THE  INVENTION  OF 
LITHOGRAPHY 


ALOIS    SENEFELDER 


J 


THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


^3p  aioia  S'tnrfcHitr 

Trauslated  from  the  Original  (ierman 

by  J.  W.  MULLER 

THE   INVENTION  OF   LITHOGRAPHY 

Cloth  4to  ?s-oo                                    Postpaid 

THE  FUCHS  &  LANG  MANUFACTURING  CO. 

New  York 

THE  INVENTION  OF  LITHOGRAPHY 


THE  INVENTION  OF 
LITHOGRAPHY 

BY 

ALOIS  SENEFELDER 


TRANSLATED 
FROM     THE     ORIGINAL     GERMAN     BY 

J.    W.    MULLER 


NEW  YORK:   THE  FUCHS   &   LANG 

MANUFACTURING  COMPANY 

191  I 


I 


COPYRIGHT,    191  I, 

BY  THE   FUCHS  &   LANG    MANUFACTURING  COMPANY 

NEW  YORK   AND   LONDON 

Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall^  London 


Library 


TRANSLATOR'S   PREFACE 

ALOIS  SENEFELDER,  not  only  the  inventor,  but  the  father  and 
perfecter  of  Lithography,  wrote  this  story  of  his  hfe  and  his  in- 
vention in  1817.  The  translator  has  followed  his  style  closely,  because  he 
felt  that  the  readers  would  prefer  to  have  this  English  edition  represent 
Senefelder's  original  German  faithfully. 

When  Senefelder  wrote,  he  had  to  invent  many  names  for  the  processes, 
manipulation-methods,  and  tools.    These  terms  have  been  translated 
literally  even  where  modern  practice  has  adopted  other  names. 
The  original  German  edition  carried  the  following  title-page :  — 

"Complete  |  Text-Book  of  Stone-Printing  |  containing  |  a  Cor- 
rect AND  Lucid  Instruction  |  for  all  Various  Manipu- 
lations IN  ALL  its  Branches  and  Methods  |  and  also  a  | 
Full  History  of  this  Art  |  from  its  Origin  to  the  Present 
Day.  I  Written  and  Published  |  by  the  Inventor  of  Lrrno- 
graphy  and  Chemical  Printing,  |  Alois  Senefelder.  |  With  a 
Preface  by  the  General-Secretary  of  the  Royal  Acad- 
emy OF  Sciences  in  |  Munich,  the  Director  |  Friederich 
von  Schlichtegroll  I  Munich,  1821  |  Obtainable  from  the 
Author  and  from  E.  A.  Fleischmann"  I 


The  book  was  dedicated  by  Senefelder  to  Maximilian  Joseph,  then  King  of  Bavaria. 
July,  19 1 1. 


J.  W.  M. 


6G0G12 


PREFACE 

A  BOOK  like  this  requires  no  preface ;  it  makes  its  own  way,  sup- 
ported by  its  contents.  But  the  famous  author  deems  that  his 
acquaintance  with  me  gave  him  the  direct  impulse  for  producing  this 
work,  which  has  been  desired  so  long  and  from  all  sides ;  and  he  wishes 
that  I  shall  say  something  about  the  history  of  its  production.  I  seize 
the  opportunity  gladly  to  prove  the  esteem  and  the  friendship  that  the 
talent  of  this  honorable  contemporary  and  fellow  countryman,  a  talent 
combined  with  the  utmost  ambition  and  with  childlike  good  nature  and 
unselfishness,  have  inspired  in  me. 

One  may  not  declare  that  his  contemporaries  showed  indifference  to  the 
invention  of  lithography  to  which  his  fortunate  star  led  Herr  Alois  Sene- 
felder,  and  to  the  improvements  that  he  sought  with  thousands  of  experi- 
ments and  restless  labor.  On  the  contrary,  the  invention  has  spread  itself 
with  surprising  speed  through  Europe  and  beyond,  and  has  been  received 
with  admiration  everywhere.  But  the  lack  of  proper  instruction,  due  to 
the  many  who  had  learned  it  only  partially  and  introduced  it  only  for  the 
sake  of  a  small,  passing  profit,  has  hampered  its  perfect  success. 

Therefore  the  inventor,  who,  happily,  still  lives  among  us,  has  been 
urged  from  near  and  far  to  tell  the  story  of  his  important,  many-sided 
discovery,  and  to  give  instructions  for  its  use,  that  is,  to  produce  such  a 
work  as  is  before  us  now. 

But  the  artistic  genius,  full  of  his  subject,  would  far  rather  work,  ex- 
periment, strive,  than  write !  Many  times  Herr  Senefelder  decided  to  set 
down  how  he  happened  on  this  art,  how  the  successive  steps  of  its  develop- 
ment were  reached,  and  at  what  point  of  development  its  various  processes 
now  stand ;  but  always  his  ceaselessly  striving  spirit  showed  him  something 
new  that  might  be  achieved,  and  forced  him  back  again  into  his  element, 
—  experimentation. 


viii  PREFACE 

Thus  the  "Pattern  Book,"  begun  in  i8og,  remained  unfinished  and 
without  text;  and  the  other  work,  announced  two  years  ago  by  Herr 
Andre,  in  Offenbach,  as  being  undertaken  by  him  with  Herr  Alois  Sene- 
felder,  hardly  would  have  seen  the  light. 

A  forceful  impetus  from  without  was  needed  to  compel  Herr  Senefelder 
to  fulfill  the  general  request  of  the  public.  It  came  as  follows.  Many 
statements  in  print  attracted  my  attention.  They  credited  the  invention  of 
lithography  to  Paris,  to  London ;  and  in  Munich  there  were  various  con- 
tradictory legends,  some  alleging  that  Herr  Alois  Senefelder  had  made  the 
very  first  experiments  and  others  crediting  them  to  Herr  Schmidt  in  Mies- 
bach,  at  that  time  Professor  in  Munich.  I  considered  it  my  duty  to  clear 
away  this  uncertainty  and  to  prepare  a  critical  history  of  this  invention 
while  it  still  was  possible. 

The  weekly  Anzeiger  fur  Kunst  und  Gewerhfleiss  in  the  kingdom  of 
Bavaria,  which  has  appeared  since  1815,  exists  for  the  purpose  of  produc- 
ing annals  of  the  art  and  industrial  history  of  Bavaria.  Therefore,  toward 
the  end  of  1816  and  early  in  1817, 1  inserted  some  letters  about  the  inven- 
tion of  lithography  and  called  on  all  friends  of  native  art  history  to  point 
out  any  inaccuracies  and  send  proofs  to  the  contrary,  that  the  truth  might 
thus  be  ascertained  about  a  subject  of  great  literary  value  for  this  gener- 
ation and  for  posterity.  More  than  all,  I  urged  Herr  Alois  Senefelder,  then 
absent,  "to  produce  a  detailed  history  of  his  invention  as  soon  as  possible, 
with  a  text-book  embellished  by  specimen  plates,  in  which  the  full  use  of 
the  art  might  be  truly  and  clearly  explained."  I  sent  this  printed  letter  to 
Herr  Senefelder  in  Vienna. 

The  first  object  of  my  request  has  been  without  much  result.  Hardly  a 
single  voice  has  been  raised  to  uncover  the  correct  and  the  incorrect  in  the 
various  stories  with  strictly  historical  accuracy,  and  thus  to  bring  the  truth 
to  light,  that  lithography  may  not  experience  what  our  Klopstock  sings : 
"Too  oft  in  eternal  night  is  cloaked  the  inventor's  great  name !" 

I  have  been  more  fortunate  in  my  second  object.  Herr  Alois  Senefelder 
recognized  my  good  intention  and  my  pure  pleasure  in  this  important  art 
that  will  give  our  Bavaria  unending  fame  and  spreading  celebrity.  Since 


PREFACE  ix 

his  return  to  Munich,  it  has  been  the  subject  of  many  conversations  be- 
tween us,  and  I  have  endeavored  to  enliven  the  courage  and  self-confi- 
dence of  this  remarkable  man,  who  often  was  depressed  by  the  failure  of 
many  an  enterprise. 

My  three  endeavors  — to  win  the  gracious  attention  of  our  most  high 
royal  family  for  the  latest  improvements  in  chemical  printing  attained 
through  Herr  Senefelder's  work;  to  impel  the  venerable  national  institu- 
tion to  which  I  belong  to  investigate  the  art  scientifically;  and  the  publica- 
tion of  the  text-book  and  the  history  of  the  inventor  —  these  have  been  not 
without  result. 

His, Majesty,  our  most  gracious  King,  this  all-honored  Father  of  his 
nation  and  his  people,  and  long  a  gracious  promoter  of  lithography,  has 
taken  gracious  cognizance  of  the  newest,  amazing  experiments  in  metal- 
lography and  papyrography  with  which  Herr  Senefelder  busied  himself 
last  winter,  has  encouraged  him  magnanimously  to  publish  the  present 
work,  and  has  permitted  that  it  shall  be  dedicated  to  his  noble  name.  Her 
Majesty,  our  supremely  honored  Queen,  herself  a  connoisseur  in  the 
creative  arts,  also  has  honored  these  experiments  with  her  gracious  atten- 
tion, and  thus  has  enlivened  the  courage  and  the  energy  of  the  artist. 

The  most  celebrated  technicians  in  the  Royal  Academy  have  examined 
these  processes  and  also  the  various  small  presses  lately  invented  by  Herr 
Senefelder  in  order  to  make  stone-printing,  and  also  metal  and  paper 
printing  available  for  private  use  and  business,  and  have  given  him  the 
most  flattering  testimonials.  The  Polytechnic  Association  of  Bavaria  also 
has  aided,  through  its  before-mentioned  weekly  publication,  in  making 
Herr  Senefelder  and  his  art,  and  especially  his  most  recent  achievements, 
known  in  a  wider  field  than  might  otherwise  be  possible,  and  to  bring  him 
to  the  attention  of  his  fellow  citizens  and  interested  travelers. 

At  last,  Herr  Alois  Senefelder  has  used  the  hours  that  he  could  spare 
from  his  continuous  experiments  and  investigations  to  write  down  the 
history  of  his  labors  out  of  his  faithful  memory ;  and  also  to  give  a  full 
description  of  all  methods  invented  by  him  to  this  time,  accompanied  by 
highly  instructive  specimen  pages,  partly  made  by  himself  and  partly  by 


X  PREFACE 

artistic  friends,  but  all  printed  either  with  his  own  hand  or  under  his  direct 
supervision. 

Thus  with  the  past  winter  there  developed  a  new,  still  more  busy  life  of 
this  rare,  useful  man ;  and  thus  there  originated  the  present  work  that  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  declare  as  belonging  among  the  most  noteworthy  produc- 
tions of  the  present  Leipsic  Book  Fair. 

The  book  is  in  two  parts:  (i)  the  history  of  the  invention  and  of  the 
various  applications  of  the  new  art :  (2)  the  description  of  the  methods  for 
writing,  drawing,  engraving,  transferring,  etching,  and  printing,  stated 
with  all  the  clearness  possible,  and  accompanied  with  object-lessons  in  the 
form  of  wonderfully  successful  and  instructive  specimen  plates. 

With  the  great  candor  inherent  in  the  character  of  the  author  he  tells 
faithfully  how  he  came  to  make  his  first  experiments,  what  mistakes  he 
made,  with  what  inner  and  outer  difhculties  he  contended,  how  one  idea 
led  to  another,  what  combinations  he  tried,  what  plans,  successful  and 
unsuccessful,  he  made,  and  under  what  unrest  and  embarrassments  he 
lived  for  many  years. 

The  minute  detail  of  the  history  and  the  interpolation  of  the  personal 
relations  of  the  author  and  his  acquaintances  may  surprise  many  readers 
at  first  sight ;  but  many  of  these  are  intimately  connected  with  the  develop- 
ment of  stone-printing,  and  in  the  cases  of  others,  the  author  did  not  have 
time  to  re-write  what  really  had  been  written  as  only  the  first  draft,  be- 
cause his  original  intention  of  re-writing  would  have  prevented  the  appear- 
ance of  the  book  in  the  present  Easter  Book  Fair. 

In  tlie  history  of  an  important  invention,  minuteness  hardly  can  be 
called  a  fault.  How  gladly  would  we  read  all  the  family  circumstances  of 
Johann  Guttenberg  and  Johann  Fust,  if  there  were  such  a  history  of  the 
beginnings  of  typography  as  now  is  before  us  about  lithography ! 

Thus  there  has  been  fulfilled  the  desire  that  Herr  Alois  Senefelder  tell 
openly  and  plainly  how  he  came  to  discover  stone-printing.  Now  that  his 
testimony  and  claims  lie  open  to  all  eyes,  it  is  possible  to  compare  it  with 
the  other  stories  that  are  told,  and  to  bring  the  necessary  accuracy  into  the 
investigation  by  sharply  defining  those  things  that  properly  may  be  called 


PREFACE  xi 

stone-print.  It  is  time  to  urge  contemporaries  once  more  to  declare  any- 
thing known  to  them  that  is  in  contradiction  of  this  history,  so  that  a  criti- 
cal history  of  stone-printing  may  be  produced,  with  a  chronicle  of  what 
was  done  in  the  early  years  of  the  art,  how  and  by  whom,  so  that  we 
may  learn  if  several  minds  had  the  idea  simultaneously,  and  thus  to  do 
justice  to  all.  It  is  to  be  desired  that  a  writer  equipped  for  the  purpose 
with  total  non-partisanship,  utter  truthfulness,  and  clearness  of  per- 
ception and  judgment  may  do  this  not  unimportant  service  to  literature 
very  soon! 

As  to  the  text-book,  forming  the  second  part  of  this  publication,  it  has 
been  demanded  even  more  than  the  history. 

Stone-printing  has  spread  so  much  in  recent  years  that  a  few  certain 
lithographers  could  no  doubt  give  satisfactory  instruction.  But  there  is 
only  one  voice  among  those  who  are  acquainted  with  the  matter  thor- 
oughly, and  that  is,  that  Herr  Alois  Senefelder  made  not  only  the  earliest 
but  the  most  numerous  and  various  experiments,  and  therefore  is  the  fore- 
most man  to  give  instruction. 

He  is  of  an  upright  spirit,  and  I  can  assert  with  full  conviction  that  in 
this  text-book  his  aim  was  not  only  to  tell  everything  fully,  but  also  with 
the  utmost  accuracy.  Already  he  has  instructed  many  in  the  art,  trained 
many  others,  and  thus  has  learned  what  are  the  circumstances  that  ordi- 
narily hinder  the  efforts  of  a  beginner. 

Even  recently,  according  to  his  statement  and  that  of  Professor  Mit- 
terer,  whom  I  consider  the  best  expert  in  lithography  next  to  Senefelder, 
there  still  have  been  phenomena  that  surprised  lithographers  most  un- 
pleasantly in  the  midst  of  a  piece  of  work,  and  ruined  results  as  if  by  witch- 
craft,—  cases  wherein,  in  two  apparently  perfectly  similar  manipulations, 
there  would  not  succeed  to-day  that  which  had  succeeded  yesterday,  nay, 
even  an  hour  before.  The  text-book  gives  all  explanations  and  remedies 
for  such  cases  that  the  wide  experiences  of  Senefelder  have  made  known  to 
him.  Therefore,  if  an  artist  proceeds  exactly  according  to  the  instructions 
given  here,  and  yet  meets  obstacles,  he  need  merely  look  for  the  reason  in 
some  small,  unnoticed  detail  or  in  the  quality  of  his  materials.  He  need 


xii  PREFACE 

not  become  discouraged,  for  if  he  has  faith  in  his  faithful  and  candid 
teacher,  he  will  attain  the  goal. 

Besides  the  branches  and  methods  already  known  and  practiced  with 
success  outside  of  Munich,  as  in  Karlsruhe,  Stuttgart,  Berlin,  London, 
Paris,  etc.,  this  text-book  teaches  several  methods  that  had  not  been  made 
public  by  the  inventor  till  now ;  and  the  fundamental  principles  of  those 
methods  already  known  are  stated  here  solidly.  He  gives  information  also 
of  his  most  recent  attempts  to  use  metal  plates  as  well  as  the  stone  paper 
recently  invented  by  him. 

Although  the  procedure  in  these  two  latter  methods  resembles  stone- 
printing  largely,  it  differs  so  much  in  some  points  from  real  lithography 
that  Herr  Senefelder  proposes  to  publish  a  work  about  these  processes 
especially,  which  may  then  serve  as  a  supplement  to  this  one. 

So  may  this  work  go  forth  in  the  world  under  good  auspices,  to  increase 
the  fame  of  its  author,  secure  for  him  the  respect  of  all  friends  of  art  in  and 
outside  of  Germany,  and  become  an  encouragement  for  him  to  dedicate 
his  life  further  to  his  greatly  promising  art  and  its  fullest  development ! 

Honor  in  rich  measure  has  come  to  him  already  through  his  art.  A 
worldly  wise  man  in  his  place  would  have  become  a  wealthy  one.  That 
he  is  not ;  but  our  magnanimous  King  has  made  him  secure  against  want 
during  his  remaining  life,  and  my  knowledge  of  his  character  assures  me 
that  he  will  utilize  this,  and  any  other  advantage  that  may  accrue  to  him  in 
time  to  come  through  this  work  or  his  art,  for  perfecting  it,  and  then  to 
train  his  only  son,  now  five  years  old,  to  the  art,  so  that  he  may  practice  it 
in  future  with  honor  to  his  father's  name. 

Friedrich  von  Schlichtegroll. 

Munich,  Easter  Day,  i8i8. 


SECTION  I 

HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 


PART  I 

FROM    1796   TO    1800 

AS  my  father,  Peter  Senefelder  of  Konigshofen  in  Franken,  was 
court  actor  in  Munich,  I  had  ample  opportunity  in  early  youth 
to  see  and  read  many  theatrical  pieces.  Thus  I  developed  such  a  love 
for  this  branch  of  literature  and  for  the  theatre  that  I  would  have 
become  an  actor  myself  had  I  been  permitted  to  obey  my  inclination.  But 
my  father,  who  was  determined  not  to  permit  any  of  his  children  to  choose 
the  stage,  compelled  me  to  study  law.  I  could  satisfy  my  longings  only 
occasionally  by  playing  a  few  times  in  private  theatricals  and  by  venturing 
on  a  few  dramatic  writings  in  my  hours  of  recreation.  In  my  eighteenth 
year  (1789)  the  question  arose,  at  a  gathering  of  youngsters,  as  to  how  we 
should  entertain  ourselves  in  the  approaching  Carnival  time.  We  decided 
to  give  a  little  private  play. 

Many  pieces  were  proposed,  but  none  seemed  suitable,  because  each 
one  wished  to  play  a  good  and  suitable  part,  and,  besides,  we  could  not  fill 
most  of  the  parts,  as  we  lacked  women.  We  were  almost  giving  up  hope 
when  Herr  Kuerzinger,  now  court  actor,  proposed  to  me  to  write  a  play, 
as  I  had  begun  one  shortly  before  that  happened  to  suit  each  of  my  friends. 

I  finished  the  little  piece,  Die  MaJchen  Kenner,  in  a  short  time.  It  was 
ready  for  production,  when  through  accident  we  were  disappointed  about 
securing  the  private  theatre  on  which  we  had  counted.  We  were  embold- 
ened to  request  leave  to  produce  it  in  the  Kurfurst's  Court  Theatre  and 
succeeded,  thanks  to  my  father's  aid.  The  over-kind  praise  which  it  won 
encouraged  me  to  have  the  play  printed.  Although  I  was  pretty  generous 


2  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

with  free  copies  among  my  friends,  I  received  so  mucii  from  Lentner,  the 
book-dealer  in  Munich,  that  a  net  profit  of  fifty  gulden  remained  to  me. 

I  had  not  worked  eight  days  on  the  little  thing,  and  had  made  all  this 
money,  without  counting  the  pleasure  of  the  work.  No  wonder  that  now 
I  feared  no  longer  for  my  future !  My  love  for  the  theatre  became  over- 
powering, and  as  my  father  died  soon  afterward  (1791),  and  I  found  no 
further  assistance  toward  completing  my  studies  in  Ingolstadt,  I  resolved 
to  become  a  dramatic  author  and  actor. 

I  found  no  place  for  me  in  the  Court  Theatre.  Its  leaders  were  opposed 
to  my  family,  because  my  mother  with  her  large  family  received  a  larger 
pension,  through  the  favor  of  the  Kurf  iirst,  than  she  could  have  expected 
in  ordinary  course.  In  a  few  strolling  theatres,  such  as  Regensburg,  Niirn- 
berg,  Erlangen,  and  Augsburg,  where  I  endured  privation  and  misfortune 
enough,  my  enthusiasm  was  well  dampened  in  the  course  of  two  years.  I 
decided,  as  I  could  see  no  other  prospects  for  the  moment  despite  my  not 
inconsiderable  attainments,  to  support  myself  in  future  as  author. 

I  had  written  several  dramatic  pieces  already  that  had  won  sufficient 
applause.  Therefore  I  decided  to  have  some  of  these  printed  in  order  to 
meet  my  immediate  expenses.  I  gave  one  of  them  to  the  printing  establish- 
ment of  Herr  Hiibschmann,  in  Munich,  and  when  the  first  folio  was  fin- 
ished, I  made  the  proposition  to  Herr  Lentner  to  take  some  or  all  of  the 
copies.  He  told  me  that  I  would  have  done  better  to  let  him  have  the  man- 
uscript ;  but  since  it  had  been  begun,  he  told  me  to  make  sure  that  it  be  fin- 
ished before  the  beginning  of  the  Leipsic  Easter  Fair,  in  which  case  he 
promised  to  obtain  for  me  one  hundred  gulden  net,  after  deducting  all 
costs.  I  begged  Herr  Hiibschmann  to  finish  the  printing,  but,  as  he  assured 
me  that  it  was  impossible,  I  took  the  remaining  folios  to  another  printer. 
Despite  this  the  play  was  not  printed  till  two  weeks  after  the  fair,  and  I 
received  from  Herr  Lentner  barely  enough  to  pay  the  printing  cost. 

My  hope  of  profit  was  lost.  I  had,  however,  seen  the  entire  procedure 
of  printing,  because  I  had  spent  many  a  day  in  the  establishments.  I 
found  that  it  would  not  be  hard  for  me  to  learn,  and  could  not  withstand 
the  desire  to  own  a  small  printing  establishment  myself.  "Thus,"  thought 


FROM    1796   TO    1800  3 

I,  "I  can  print  my  productions  myself,  and  so  alternate  healthfully 
between  mental  and  physical  activities."  I  could  earn  a  decent  living, 
too,  and  thus  become  an  independent  man. 

This  idea  controlled  me  so  that  I  studied  all  sorts  of  ways  to  realize  it. 
If  I  had  possessed  tlie  necessary  money,  I  would  have  bought  types,  a 
press  and  paper,  and  printing  on  stone  probably  would  not  have  been  in- 
vented so  soon.  The  lack  of  funds,  however,  forced  me  to  other  expedients. 
At  first  I  thought  of  etching  letters  in  steel.  These  matrices  I  planned  then 
to  impress  on  pear  wood,  in  which  the  letters  would  show  in  relief,  some- 
what like  the  cast  type  of  the  book  printers,  and  they  could  have  been 
printed  like  a  wood-cut.  A  few  experiments  showed  me  the  possibility  of 
this,  and  I  could  easily  have  invented  a  machine  with  which  the  moulding 
could  have  been  done  more  quickly  than  a  printer  could  set  his  type.  I 
reserve  the  right  to  use  this  possibly  fruitful  idea  in  future  with  improve- 
ments. At  the  time,  however,  I  had  to  give  up  the  whole  thing  through 
lack  of  implements  and  sufficient  skill  in  engraving. 

Then  it  struck  me  that  if  I  had  only  enough  types  to  set  one  colunrm  or 
folio,  I  could  press  this  into  a  soft  material,  transfer  the  impression  to  a 
board  covered  with  soft  sealing-wax,  and  reproduce  the  relief  plate  thus 
obtained  in  stereotype  form.  The  attempt  succeeded  perfectly.  I  made  a 
sort  of  dough  of  clay,  fine  sand,  flour,  and  coal-dust,  which,  being  firmly 
kneaded,  took  the  impression  very  well,  and  was  so  dry  in  a  quarter  of  an 
hour  that  I  could  print  warmed  sealing-wax  thoroughly  well  with  a  small 
press.  I  inked  these  letters  of  sealing-wax  relief  with  printing-ink  laid  on 
with  a  leather  roller  stuff^ed  with  horse-hair  and  obtained  a  result  as  clean 
as  any  obtained  from  ordinary  types.  By  mixing  finely  powdered  gypsum 
with  the  sealing-wax  I  made  the  latter  harder  than  the  ordinary  type  com- 
position. Thus  there  was  nothing  in  the  way  of  my  making  stereotype 
plates  (which  I  did  not  know  by  this  name  at  that  time),  except  a  few 
minor  appliances  and  a  small  stock  of  types.  But  even  this  exceeded  my 
financial  power  and  I  gave  up  the  plan,  especially  as  I  had  conceived  a 
new  one  during  my  experiments. 

This  was  to  learn  to  write  out  ordinary  type  letters  exactly,  but  reversed. 


4  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

I  planned  that  as  soon  as  I  attained  the  skill,  I  would  write  them  with  an 
elastic  steel  pen  on  a  copper  plate  covered  in  ordinary  manner  with  etch- 
ing surface,  etch,  and  let  the  copper-plate  printers  print  them.  In  a  few 
days  I  had  such  skill  in  reverse  writing  that  I  attacked  the  etching  on  cop- 
per bravely.  Here,  to  be  sure,  I  met  greater  difficulties.  Writing  on  cop- 
per over  the  etching  surface  was  far  more  difficult  than  writing  on  paper. 
Then  the  preparation  of  the  plate,  the  etching,  etc.,  demanded  some  prac- 
tice ;  but  all  this  I  hoped  to  conquer  in  time.  The  one  thing  that  troubled 
me  was  that  I  could  not  correct  the  errors  made  during  writing.  The 
accessories  of  copper-plate  engravers,  especially  the  so-called  cover  var- 
nish, were  quite  unknown  to  me.  I  knew  no  remedy  except  to  paint  the 
faulty  places  over  with  molten  wax,  but  the  covering  generally  became  so 
thick  that  I  could  not  work  through  it  properly  and  had  to  leave  the  cor- 
rections for  the  graving  stilus,  which,  however,  I  could  not  handle  at  the 
time. 

As,  however,  the  proofs  were  thoroughly  satisfactory  to  me,  I  labored 
desperately  to  overcome  the  difficulty.  During  my  student  years  I  had 
attained  much  chemical  knowledge,  and  I  knew  that  most  of  the  resinous 
products  which  withstand  acid,  as  well  as  the  fats,  wax,  tallow,  and  so 
forth,  can  be  dissolved  and  diluted  partly  in  etheric  oils  and  spirits  of  wine, 
and  partly  in  alkalies.  My  problem  was  to  obtain  a  thin  mass  which  would 
permit  itself  to  be  spread  very  thinly  in  cold  condition  over  the  copper 
etching  surface,  dry  quickly,  become  sufficiently  firm  after  drying  without 
getting  tough,  and,  above  all,  be  something  that  would  not  attack  the  etch- 
ing surface.  A  few  trials  with  spirits  of  wine  and  various  resinous  forms 
gave  no  satisfaction.  The  one  experiment  that  I  made  with  oil  of  turpen- 
tine and  wax  also  failed,  presumably  because  I  diluted  the  mixture  more 
than  necessary,  which  caused  it  to  flow  too  much  and  dissolve  the  etching 
surface,  at  which  time  several  well-done  parts  of  the  engraving  were 
ruined.  Besides,  this  mixture  dried  only  slowly  to  the  degree  necessary  for 
working.  Fortunately  I  made  no  further  experiments  with  this  material, 
because  then  I  should  not  have  invented  stone-printing,  as  I  know  now 
how  to  make  a  cover  varnish  that  is  quite  satisfactory. 


FROM    1796   TO    1800  5 

I  turned,  instead,  to  an  experiment  with  wax  and  soap,  which  succeeded 
beyond  all  expectations.  A  mixture  of  three  parts  of  wax  with  one  part 
of  common  tallow  soap,  melted  over  the  fire,  mixed  with  some  fine  lamp- 
black, and  then  dissolved  in  rainwater,  gave  me  a  sort  of  black  ink  with 
which  I  could  correct  faulty  spots  most  easily. 

Now  I  needed  only  practice  in  order  to  carry  out  my  project  of  etching 
my  literary  productions  in  copper.  This  presented  a  new  difficulty.  After 
I  had  written  on  my  single  little  copper  plate,  etched  it,  and  pulled  proofs 
at  the  house  of  a  friend  who  possessed  a  copper-plate  press,  I  had  to  spend 
some  hours  again  laboriously  grinding  and  polishing  the  plate,  a  process 
which  also  wore  away  the  copper  fast. 

This  led  me  to  practice  on  zinc,  which  was  easier  to  scrape  and  polish. 
An  old  zinc  plate  of  my  mother's  was  requisitioned  at  once,  but  the  results 
were  very  unsatisfactory,  because  the  zinc  probably  was  mixed  with  lead, 
and  I  had  used  only  aqua  fortis  instead  of  more  powerful  acid. 

I  did  not  continue  trials  with  zinc,  because  just  then  I  obtained  a  hand- 
some piece  of  Kellheimer  stone  for  the  purpose  of  rubbing  down  my  colors 
on  it ;  and  it  occurred  to  me  that  if  I  painted  this  stone  plate  with  my  wax 
ink,  it  would  serve  as  well  for  practicing  as  copper  or  zinc,  with  very  little 
labor  in  grinding  and  polishing.  The  experiments  succeeded,  and  though 
I  had  not  thought  originally  that  the  stone  itself  might  be  used  for  printing 
(the  samples  I  had  seen  hitherto  of  this  Kellheim  limestone  were  too  thin 
to  withstand  the  pressure  exerted  in  printing),  I  soon  began  to  believe 
that  it  was  possible.  It  was  much  easier  to  do  good  work  on  the  stone  than 
on  the  copper.  I  observed  also  that  I  needed  weaker  and  much  diluted 
aqua  fortis. 

A  stone  mason  told  me  that  he  could  provide  me  with  this  sort  of  lime- 
stone in  plates  from  one  inch  to  eight  inches  thick.  Thus  I  needed  not  to 
fear  cracking  of  the  stone;  and  the  only  thing  that  I  needed  to  invent,  in 
order  to  use  the  stone  just  like  copper,  was  either  a  way  to  give  the  stone 
a  better  polish,  or  else  a  tint  which  would  be  easier  to  rub  away  than  the 
ordinary  copper-plate  printing-ink.  The  stone  will  not  take  the  polish  that 
is  demanded  with  ordinary  printer's  ink, — and  perhaps  this  is  the  reason 


6  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

why  the  stone  has  not  been  used  long  before  my  time  as  substitute  for  cop- 
per, for  I  imagine  that  such  attempts  must  have  been  made. 

I  tried  all  possible  kinds  of  polishing  and  grinding  without  attaining 
my  purpose  completely.  The  result  was  best  when  I  poured  a  mixture  of 
one  part  of  concentrated  oil  of  vitriol  and  four  or  five  parts  of  water  over 
the  stone  after  polishing  it.  This  mixture,  which  is  very  sharp,  has  the 
property  of  boiling  immediately  when  poured  over  the  stone,  but  ceasing 
instantly,  so  that  one  is  tempted  to  believe  that  the  vitriol  has  sated  itself 
and  lost  its  power.  This  is  not  so,  however;  for  the  same  fluid,  placed  on 
an  untouched  part  of  the  stone,  boils  again  at  once.  The  reason  is  that  a 
firm  skin  of  gypsum  forms  at  once  on  the  stone,  and  this  remains  imper- 
vious to  the  fluid.  If  now  the  etching  fluid  is  poured  ofi^  and  the  stone  is 
rubbed  lightly  with  a  rag,  it  attains  a  shining  polish.  Unfortunately  this 
is  so  thin  and  weak  that  one  can  make  barely  fifty  impressions  without 
repeating  the  process,  which  involves  some  loss  to  the  drawing.  But  if  one 
desires  to  print  in  the  present  chemical  style,  that  is,  wet,  and  the  stone  is 
polished  before  the  drawing,  one  can  make  several  thousand  imprints, 
which  will  be  described  in  the  proper  place. 

All  experiments  to  find  a  color  easy  to  wipe  away  showed  me  that  on  a 
stone  prepared  with  oil  of  vitriol  none  was  better  than  a  light  oil  varnish 
with  fine  Frankfurter  black  and  some  tartar.  This  mixture  could  be 
washed  off  with  a  weak  solution  in  spring  water  of  potash  and  common 
salt.  However,  it  happened  often  that  slight  carelessness  in  washing 
destroyed  designed  parts  which  took  color  again  afterward  only  after 
much  trouble.  Recollection  of  this  occurrence,  which  I  could  not  under- 
stand clearly  at  the  time,  led  me  some  years  later  to  the  invention  of  the 
chemical  stone-printing  of  to-day. 

I  have  told  all  these  things  fully  in  order  to  prove  to  the  reader  that  I  did 
not  invent  stone-printing  through  lucky  accident,  but  that  I  arrived  at  it 
by  a  way  pointed  out  by  industrious  thought.  It  will  be  seen  that  I  knew 
the  ink,  before  I  thought  of  its  use  on  stone.  The  stone  I  used  at  first  only 
to  practice  writing.  The  ease  of  writing  on  stone  lured  me  then  to  try  to 
make  it  available  for  direct  printing.  To  do  this,  I  had  to  discover  a  way 


FROM    1796   TO    1800  7 

to  rub  away  the  black  as  completely  from  all  unetched  parts  of  the  stone  as 
the  copper-plate  printer  can  do  it  from  his  surface,  in  comparison  with 
which  the  stone  was  but  slightly  smooth. 

At  this  time  my  further  experiments  with  this  etched  form  of  stonfr 
printing  were  entirely  checked  by  a  new,  accidental  discovery.  Until  now 
I  had  invented  little  that  was  new,  but  simply  had  applied  the  copper- 
plate etching  method  to  stone.  But  this  new  discovery  founded  an  entirely 
new  form  of  printing,  which  basically  became  the  foundation  of  all  suc- 
ceeding methods. 

Had  the  stone  merely  proved  available  as  substitute  for  copper,  I  would 
have  returned  to  copper  as  soon  as  I  could  afford  it,  despite  several  advan- 
tages of  stone,  and  for  the  following  reasons :  first,  the  necessary  weight 
and  thickness  of  the  stones ;  second,  because  the  printing  process  was 
slower  than  with  copper ;  third,  because  probably  I  never  would  have 
become  sufficiently  skilled  in  the  difficult  manipulation  of  washing  off ;  but 
chiefly,  because  the  necessary  spur,  the  originality  of  the  discovery,  would 
have  been  lacking,  since  I  remembered  that  as  a  child  of  five  or  six  I  had 
seen  a  music-printery  in  Frankfurt  or  Mainz  where  the  notes  were  etched 
in  black  slate-stone.  I  had  played  often  with  the  broken  stones,  which  lay 
in  a  heap  near  our  house.  Enough,  I  was  not  the  first  discoverer  of  stone- 
etching,  nor  of  stone-printing ;  and  only  after  I  made  this  new  discovery 
which  I  will  describe  now,  which  led  me  from  the  engraved  to  the  relief 
process,  with  my  new  ink,  might  I  call  myself  the  inventor  of  an  art. 

At  that  time  I  could  not  guess  that  I  was  to  invent  a  form  of  printing  dif- 
ferent even  from  this  new  and  original  form,  a  method  which  was  to 
be  based  not  on  mechanical  but  purely  chemical  properties.  Even  this 
method,  new  in  1796,  still  was  purely  mechanical  in  its  purpose,  whereas 
the  present  printing  method,  which  I  began  in  1799,  may  be  called  purely 
chemical. 

I  had  just  ground  a  stone  plate  smooth  in  order  to  treat  it  with  etching 
fluid  and  to  pursue  on  it  my  practice  in  reverse  writing,  when  my  mother 
asked  me  to  write  a  laundry  list  for  her.  The  laundress  was  waiting,  but  we 
could  find  no  paper.  My  own  supply  had  been  used  up  by  pulling  proofs. 


8  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

Even  the  writing-ink  was  dried  up.  Without  bothering  to  look  for  writing 
materials,  I  wrote  the  list  hastily  on  the  clean  stone,  with  my  prepared 
stone  ink  of  wax,  soap,  and  lampblack,  intending  to  copy  it  as  soon  as 
paper  was  supplied. 

As  I  was  preparing  afterward  to  wash  the  writing  from  the  stone,  I 
became  curious  to  see  what  would  happen  with  writing  made  thus  of  pre- 
pared ink,  if  the  stone  were  now  etched  with  aqua  fortis.  I  thought  that 
possibly  the  letters  would  be  left  in  relief  and  admit  of  being  inked  and 
printed  like  book-types  or  wood-cuts.  My  experience  in  etching,  which 
had  showed  me  that  the  fluid  acted  in  all  directions,  did  not  encourage  me 
to  hope  that  the  writing  would  be  left  in  much  relief.  But  the  work  was 
coarse,  and  therefore  not  so  likely  to  be  under-cut  as  ordinary  work,  so  I 
made  the  trial.  I  poured  a  mixture  of  one  part  aqua  fortis  and  ten  parts  of 
water  over  the  plate  and  let  it  stand  two  inches  deep  for  about  five  minutes. 
Then  I  examined  the  result  and  found  the  writing  about  one  tenth  of  a  line 
or  the  thickness  of  a  playing-card  in  relief. 

A  few  finer  strokes  had  been  injured  slightly,  but  the  others  had  hardly 
lost  breadth  noticeably  and  not  at  all  in  depth,  so  that  I  had  good  reason  to 
hope  that  a  well-written  plate,  particularly  in  type  letter,  would  be  suscep- 
tible of  much  better  relief. 

Eagerly  I  began  inking  in.  I  used  a  fine  leather  ball,  stuff^ed  with  horse- 
hair, and  inked  it  very  gently  with  thick  linseed  oil  varnish  and  lampblack. 
I  patted  the  inscription  many  times  with  this  ball.  The  letters  all  took  the 
color  well,  but  it  also  went  into  all  spaces  greater  than  half  a  line.  That 
this  was  due  to  the  over-great  elasticity  of  the  ball  was  clear  to  me.  So  I 
cleansed  my  plate  with  soap  and  water,  made  the  leather  tense,  and  used 
less  color.  Now  I  found  color  only  in  such  spaces  as  were  two  or  more 
lines  apart. 

I  saw  that  I  could  attain  my  purpose  better  with  a  dauber  of  stifi^er  mate- 
rial. I  tried  at  once  with  a  piece  of  glass  from  a  broken  mirror,  and  as 
this  succeeded  fairly  well,  I  tried  elastic  metal  plates.  Finally  I  made  an 
entirely  satisfactory  appliance  out  of  a  thin  board,  very  smoothly  planed 
and  covered  with  a  fine  cloth. 


FROM    1796   TO    1800  9 

My  further  experiments  with  this  relief  plate  succeeded  far  better  than 
my  previous  ones  with  etched  letters.  The  inking  in  was  much  easier,  and 
hardly  one  quarter  of  the  force  was  necessary  for  making  impressions. 
Thus  the  stones  were  not  so  liable  to  crack,  and,  what  was  the  most  im- 
portant for  me,  this  method  of  printing  was  entirely  new,  and  I  might  hope 
to  obtain  a  franchise  and  even  financial  aid.  This  hope  grew  when  I 
learned  that  Riegel  of  Munich,  who  had  invented  a  new  sort  of  Frankfurter 
black,  had  received  ten  thousand  gulden  to  erect  a  factory,  although  no 
human  being  could  use  it  as  a  sufficient  substitute,  as  I  proved  by  many 
trials.  I  saw  the  great  field  for  my  stone-printing  art  and  did  not  doubt 
that  I  would  obtain  assistance,  even  should  it  be  only  a  twentieth  part  of 
what  Herr  Riegel  had  received  for  his  entirely  worthless  process. 

The  new  art  was  invented,  and  soon  was  sufficiently  practised;  but 
again  came  the  need  for  a  little  capital,  to  buy  a  press,  some  stones,  paper, 
tools,  and  so  forth.  If  I  did  not  wish  to  give  up  my  hopes  again,  I  must 
seek  some  way  to  obtain  the  necessary  means.  All  my  endeavors  were 
fruitless.  Only  one  way  showed  itself.  An  acquaintance,  who  served  in  the 
artillery,  had  offered  to  pay  two  hundred  gulden  for  a  substitute.  In  my 
helplessness  I  offered  myself.  I  thought:  "Once  you  are  in  the  artillery 
and  have  mastered  the  exercises,  you  can  get  furlough  and  the  permission 
to  do  your  printing.  You  can  pay  others  to  do  your  sentry  goes,  and  thus 
there  will  be  only  a  few  weeks  a  year  in  which  the  regiment  will  demand 
your  presence.  As  soon  as  you  have  earned  a  few  hundred  gulden  you  can 
get  a  substitute  yourself,  or,  at  worst  —  how  soon  six  years  will  pass !  Per- 
haps you  can  make  your  fortune  in  the  artillery,  too !  You  will  display  zeal, 
and  your  knowledge  is  such  that  probably  few  in  the  corps  will  be  superior 
to  you.  Mathematics,  and  especially  mechanics  and  geography,  were  ever 
your  favorite  studies;  you  were  one  of  the  first  of  the  Munich  Lyceum  in 
these  branches ;  therefore  it  is  certain  that  you  will  be  noticed  and  pro- 
moted "  — and  other  such  chimerical  hopes. 

On  the  third  day  I  went  with  a  transport  of  recruits  to  Ingolstadt,  which 
then  was  the  quarters  of  the  Bavarian  artillery.  I  entered  that  city  with 
feelings  different  from  those  with  which  I  had  left  it  as  Academician.  But 


10  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

the  thought  of  my  invention  elevated  my  spirit  to  a  certain  dignity  and 
comforted  me  with  the  prophecy  of  a  better  future.  I  was  presented  to  the 
chief  of  company  and  slept  a  night  in  the  barracks,  where  unpleasant 
remarks  and  the  conduct  of  a  vulgar  corporal  cast  heavy  shadows  over  the 
coming  soldiering.  Next  morning,  when  I  was  to  be  enrolled  and  named 
Prague  as  my  birth-place,  I  was  informed  that  a  recent  royal  order  shut 
out  all  foreigners  from  the  Bavarian  service.  So  I  started  on  my  return, 
poorer  by  a  hope,  but  not  in  entire  despair.  As  I  looked  down  from  the 
Danube  bridge  into  the  majestic  stream,  where  as  a  student  I  was  nearly 
drowned  once,  I  could  not  quite  prevent  the  thought  that  my  rescue  at  that 
time  had  not  been  fortunate,  since  a  too  unkind  fate  seemed  to  deny  me 
even  the  one  means  of  support,  open  to  the  most  helpless,  that  of  the  army. 

Still,  though  cheated  by  hope  a  thousand  times,  I  ever  followed  her 
lures  again,  and  a  new  plan  instantly  formed  itself  to  replace  the  one  that 
had  just  gone  to  wreck.  I  decided  to  give  up  my  literary  work  for  the  time 
being  and  work  as  a  printer  for  wages. 

Some  very  badly  printed  music  that  I  bought  in  Ingolstadt  awakened  the 
idea  that  with  my  new  printing  process  I  could  furnish  much  better  work, 
I  decided  to  go  at  once  to  Herr  Falter,  the  music-dealer  of  Munich,  to 
interest  him  in  my  invention  and  obtain  a  small  advance  of  money.  Had 
I  done  this,  my  art  might  have  been  more  thoroughly  perfected  long  ago ; 
but,  again,  it  might  never  have  been  developed  as  it  has  been,  for  it  was 
amply  sufficient  already  for  music-printing.  My  shyness,  however,  pre- 
vented me  from  addressing  Herr  Falter.  Twice  I  was  at  his  door,  and  each 
time  I  retreated.  The  second  time  I  met  a  good  acquaintance,  a  musician 
named  Schrott.  In  reply  to  my  inquiry  if  he  knew  Herr  Falter,  he  said 
"No,"  but  he  told  me  that  the  court  musician,  Gleissner,  had  paid  recently 
to  have  several  masses  printed  and  intended  to  publish  some  more  church 
music  soon.  Who  was  happier  than  I  over  this  news ! 

Herr  Gleissner  was  a  good  friend  of  old.  While  I  was  in  tlie  theatre  I 
had  engaged  him  to  compose  several  songs,  and  had  found  him  a  humane 
and  righteous  man.  Within  half  an  hour  I  was  in  his  house  and  explaining 
my  invention  to  his  wife,  he  being  absent.  I  aroused  her  interest  so  much 


FROM   1796  TO   1800  II 

that  she  seemed  thoroughly  eager  to  have  me  hurry  back  with  a  little  press 
model,  in  order  to  show  them  both  the  working  of  the  process. 

The  entire  behavior  of  the  woman  was  so  open  and  artless  that  I 
dismissed  my  first  thought,  "I  might  be  cheated  out  of  my  invention," 
and  hurried  to  Herr  Gleissner  in  the  afternoon  with  my  simple  appa- 
ratus. 

My  printing  succeeded  absolutely.  Gleissner  marveled  at  the  swiftness 
and  beauty  of  the  impressions,  and,  knowing  my  penniless  condition,  he 
offered  of  his  own  free  will  to  pay  for  a  small  printery. 

My  mother  had  given  me  a  press  already.  It  was  the  ordinary  copper- 
plate press  with  two  cylinders.  True,  it  was  very  roughly  made,  being  a 
house  carpenter's  work,  but  it  had  cost  only  six  gulden.  However,  one 
could  make  very  pretty  impressions  from  stone  with  it.  To  spare  Herr 
Gleissner 's  treasury,  I  contented  myself  with  it  for  the  time.  I  bought  a 
small  stock  of  stones,  paper,  and  other  necessary  articles. 

Herr  Gleissner  composed  twelve  songs  with  clavier  accompaniment.  I 
wrote  them  rapidly  on  stone  and  made  one  hundred  and  twenty  impres- 
sions with  the  aid  of  a  day  laborer.  Everything,  composition,  writing  on 
stone  and  printing,  was  finished  in  fourteen  days.  From  Herr  Falter,  who 
bought  one  hundred  copies,  Herr  Gleissner  received  the  sum  of  one  hun- 
dred gulden.  Stones,  which  could  be  used  over  and  over  again,  paper, 
color,  and  wages  had  cost  barely  thirty  gulden ;  thus  we  had  a  clear  profit 
of  seventy  gulden,  earned  in  fourteen  days,  and  I  gained  so  much  happy 
hope  that  I  thought  myself  richer  than  Croesus. 

We  were  gay  and  merry.  Through  his  patron,  Count  von  Torring,  then 
President  of  the  Royal  Chamber,  Herr  Gleissner  had  presented  an  im- 
pression of  our  first  work  to  the  Kurfiirst  Karl  Theodor,  and  had  received 
one  hundred  gulden  out  of  the  Cabinet  Treasury,  with  the  promise  of 
a  franchise. 

A  succeeding  little  piece  of  work,  "Duets  for  Two  Flutes,  by  Gleissner," 
brought  forty  gulden  more  into  our  chest,  and  finally  our  finances,  as  well 
as  a  bright  success  for  our  institution,  seemed  assured  by  a  contract  closed 
with  the  Countess  von  Herting  to  print  a  cantata  on  the  death  of  Mozart 


12  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

by  Cannabich,  the  musical  director,  which  promised  us  a  profit  of  one 
hundred  and  fifty  gulden  for  two  or  three  weeks'  work. 

During  this  time  I  had  presented  specimens  of  work  to  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Sciences,  with  a  description  of  the  advantages  of  the  art,  in 
which  I  named  particularly  the  cheapness,  and  said  that  the  impression 
had  been  made  on  a  press  costing  not  more  than  six  gulden.  To  my 
amazement,  instead  of  the  expected  honorable  mention,  I  received  a  sum 
of  twelve  gulden  from  the  vice-president  of  the  Academy,  Herr  von 
Vachiery,  with  the  information  that  the  members  had  voted  favorably  for 
my  invention,  and  that,  as  my  expenses  amounted  to  only  six  gulden, 
according  to  my  own  statement,  I  would,  no  doubt,  be  satisfied  with  a  sum 
double  this.  I  had  expected  an  entirely  difi^erent  appreciation  from  the 
sentinels  of  the  arts  and  sciences,  whose  office  was  to  test  the  value  of  this 
new  discovery  and  call  the  Government's  attention  to  it  if  favorable.  A 
mere  monetary  reward,  therefore,  especially  so  small  a  one,  could  not 
possibly  give  me  much  pleasure. 

Promising  as  our  beginning  was  (1793),  there  came  a  sad  period  soon 
enough  for  the  art,  for  me,  and  also  for  Herr  Gleissner.  We  had  ordered  a 
new  press  as  soon  as  our  income  permitted.  I  expected  to  produce  a  mas- 
terpiece with  the  first  impression.  Instead  of  that,  there  appeared  the  very 
opposite,  a  dirty  and  smeared  imprint.  We  suspected  that  we  had  made 
some  mistake  in  method.  The  second  attempt,  however,  was  worse  than 
the  first,  if  possible.  To  be  brief,  of  twenty  trials,  made  with  the  greatest 
industry  and  toil,  we  obtained  only  two  or  three  that  were  even  average. 

As  long  as  I  live  I  shall  be  unable  to  understand  how  we  could  have  been 
so  blind  at  that  time.  We  sought  the  cause  of  failure  in  everything  except 
the  true  thing,  — an  alteration  that  made  the  new  press  different  from  the 
old  one,  which  unfortunately  had  been  already  destroyed.  Later,  after  I 
had  invented  the  so-called  lever  or  gallows  press,  the  thing  was  clear  to  me 
at  once.  But  by  that  time  it  had  cost  me  and  Herr  Gleissner  two  years  full 
of  toil,  worry,  and  sorrow.  In  the  contract  with  the  Countess  von  Herting 
the  date  of  completion  of  the  work  had  been  stipulated,  because  she  wished 
to  surprise  Herr  Cannabich  with  it  on  his  birthday.  We  had  barely  four 


FROM   1796   TO   1800  13 

weeks  left  and  not  a  single  sheet  had  been  finished.  With  press  alterations, 
trial  impressions,  and  so  forth,  we  had  wasted  money  and  time,  and  paper 
by  the  ream.  Our  loss  amounted  to  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  gul- 
den, and  still  there  was  no  prospect  of  final  success.  Pressed  for  results  by 
the  Countess,  our  entire  reputation  and  the  honor  of  my  invention  were  at 
stake.  Added  to  this  came  many  other  annoyances,  especially  the  com- 
plaints of  Frau  Gleissner,  who  charged  that  I  had  destroyed  the  original, 
perfectly  satisfactory  press  against  her  will.  These  tested  my  courage 
sadly. 

The  cause  of  all  this  trouble  was  so  petty  that  I  really  must  have  been 
half-stupefied  by  the  fear  of  not  keeping  our  pledges,  otherwise  I  must 
have  perceived  it  at  once. 

To  make  my  first  imperfect  press  I  had  bought  a  piece  of  wood  from  a 
wheelwright  in  order  to  have  it  turned  into  two  cylinders.  Hardly  had  the 
two  been  in  the  house  a  day  before  each  one  split  so  that  a  longitudinal 
crack  of  two  inches  width  appeared.  As  the  upper  cylinder  was  thick 
enough  to  make  an  impression  of  a  whole  folio  of  sheet  music  without 
revolving  so  far  as  to  let  the  crack  reach  the  stone,  I  contented  myself  with 
it  temporarily.  Now,  in  order  not  to  spoil  the  impressions,  I  had  to  begin 
each  revolution  of  the  cylinder  at  the  crack,  for  otherwise  the  crack  might 
have  come  at  the  middle  or  end  of  the  impression  and  given  no  imprint  of 
that  part.  Therefore,  as  the  stone  was  pushed  under  the  cylinder  at  the 
crack,  it  was  already  gripped  before  the  impression  began,  and  was  drawn 
through  at  once.  With  the  new  press,  however,  the  upper  cylinder  had  to 
draw  the  stone  between  both  cylinders  in  order  to  bring  it  under  its  pres- 
sure. But  in  doing  this,  the  new  press  first  pulled  the  linen  stretched  over 
the  printing-frame  till  it  would  yield  no  more  and  forced  the  stone  power- 
fully under  the  cylinder,  during  which  of  course  the  paper  under  die  linen 
was  pulled  over  the  inked  stone  and  smeared. 

Several  attempts  to  rectify  this  trouble  were  unsuccessful.  Probably  I 
would  have  discovered  the  remedy  finally,  — either  that  the  upper  cylinder 
must  not  first  be  pressed  on  the  stone,  which  must  be  under  it  before 
each  impression  began,  or  that  I  need  only  use  tightly  stretched  leadier 


14  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

instead  of  linen.  But  I  decided,  instead,  in  order  to  complete  our  work 
if  possible,  to  have  a  press  made  in  all  haste  by  a  carpenter,  of  a  style 
like  the  book-printers'  press,  wherein  the  force  is  applied  instantly  from 
above. 

As  everything  was  very  rough,  the  new  press  was  ready  in  eight  days. 
The  first  experiment,  with  a  small  stone,  seemed  to  succeed.  But  the 
larger  stones  would  not  give  thorough  impressions,  probably  because  of 
the  uneven  surface  of  the  press,  which  was  merely  of  wood.  I  increased 
the  power  enormously.  A  stone  of  three  hundredweight  was  elevated  with 
pulleys  and  released  suddenly  to  fall  ten  feet.  It  forced  a  lever  down  on  the 
press  with  a  pressure  of  more  than  ten  thousand  pounds.  The  plates  gave 
fair  impressions  by  this  means,  but  generally  they  were  cracked  after  the 
first,  second,  or  third  impression. 

To  determine  how  much  downward  force  was  needed  to  print  a  sheet  of 
music,  I  took  a  well-ground  stone  a  square  inch  in  area,  laid  moistened 
paper  on  an  inked  printing-stone,  over  this  a  sixfold  layer  of  paper,  then  a 
double  layer  of  fine  cloth,  finally  the  square  inch  of  stone,  and  then  weights 
ranging  from  one  to  three  hundredweight. 

This  experience  taught  me  that  the  square  inch  of  surface  demanded 
three  hundredweights  of  force  to  make  a  good  impression  in  a  few  seconds, 
and  almost  less  than  half  that  weight  when  I  allowed  it  to  act  for  a  whole 
minute.  According  to  this  calculation  the  entire  sheet,  which  contained 
about  one  hundred  square  inches,  would  have  demanded  thirty  thousand 
pounds ;  and  the  stone  could  have  withstood  this  without  cracking,  had  I 
been  able  to  apply  the  pressure  evenly.  But  the  imperfections  of  the  press 
made  it  necessary  to  apply  a  pressure  three  times  as  great,  and  this  the 
stones  could  not  bear. 

To  correct  the  defects  of  this  press  was  more  than  I  cared  about,  after  I 
was  nearly  killed  by  the  three  hundredweights,  which  fell  accidentally, 
and,  as  I  stood  immediately  under  it,  would  have  beaten  out  my  brains 
had  not  a  miracle  caused  the  load  to  catch  and  hold.  The  thought  that  a 
similar  accident  might  cause  the  death  of  one  of  my  men  made  me  hate  the 
whole  press,  all  the  more  so  as  I  had  conceived  what  seemed  to  me  at  tlie 


FROM   1796   TO   1800  15 

time  an  exceedingly  happy  idea  for  a  very  simple  and  not  costly  printing- 
machine. 

Before  I  possessed  a  press  of  my  own,  I  used  to  pull  proofs  of  my  work 
in  the  following  manner,  in  order  to  avoid  the  constant  trips  to  a  printer. 
I  laid  the  dampened  paper  on  the  inked  stone.  Over  it  I  laid  some  heavy 
paper,  and  then  a  sheet  of  stiff,  carefully  smoothed  dry  paper.  Then  I 
took  a  piece  of  polished  wood  and  rubbed  this  over  the  upper  sheet  of 
paper,  holding  the  latter  firmly  to  prevent  slipping.  I  continued  the  rub- 
bing, using  more  or  less  power  according  to  whether  I  wanted  the  impres- 
sions deep  or  pale.  Thus  I  obtained  impressions  very  often  that  could  not 
have  been  better. 

I  wondered  why  this  could  not  be  done  on  a  large  scale,  and  proceeded 
to  try  at  once.  I  stretched  a  piece  of  linen  firmly  over  a  wooden  frame  two 
feet  long  and  wide.  On  this  linen  I  pasted  a  sheet  of  strong  paper,  polished 
on  the  upper  side  with  wax.  Then  with  two  bands  the  frame  was  fastened 
to  an  ordinary  wooden  table.  Then  the  stone  was  fastened  on  the  table 
under  the  frame.  Inside  of  the  printing-frame  was  a  smaller  frame  with 
cords,  to  hold  the  paper,  which  had  a  layer  of  gray  blotting-paper  under  it. 
With  a  piece  of  polished  wood,  or  a  piece  of  glass  such  as  is  used  by  pol- 
ishers, I  rubbed  the  upper  waxed  paper  thoroughly,  making  sure  that 
every  spot  was  touched. 

The  first  proof,  and  several  succeeding  ones,  which  I  made  myself, 
turned  out  so  excellent  that  probably  few  better  impressions  ever  have 
been  made  since.  Two  more  presses  were  made  at  once,  and  six  printers 
hired.  The  work  might  still  be  finished  in  the  stipulated  time.  New  hopes 
thrilled  us.  Hastily  I  inscribed  the  stones  and  the  printing  began.  But  — 
oh,  human  weakness  I  Does  it  seem  credible  that  of  my  six  helpers  not  one 
could  master  the  extremely  simple  method  of  manipulation,  the  mere 
matter  of  rubbing  evenly  and  thoroughly  ?  Of  six  impressions  hardly  one 
ever  reached  perfection.  There  were  blank  spaces  here  and  there.  Yes, 
even  when,  accidentally,  they  produced  three  sections  of  a  sheet  correctly, 
the  fourth  invariably  was  a  flat  failure,  and  thus  ruined  the  entire  sheet. 
We  would  have  been  glad  enough  had  we  lost  even  one  half  the  paper,  if 


i6  HISTORY   OF    STONE-PRINTING 

only  we  could  have  saved  our  credit  by  completing  the  work,  regardless  of 
our  money  loss.  But  of  three  reams  of  paper  only  thirty-three  impressions 
were  won  in  the  end. 

I  will  merely  touch  on  the  painful  scenes  that  ensued.  The  stipulated 
time  had  almost  expired  and  no  prospect  of  results.  The  manuscript  and 
the  paper  remaining  in  stock  were  taken  away  from  us  and  given  to  Herr 
Falter,  while  we  had  to  suffer  severe  censure  from  the  Countess,  and  in  her 
name  from  others.  Herr  Gleissner  had  to  pay  for  new  paper,  which  made 
a  monthly  deduction  from  his  salary  necessary.  The  grant  of  our  privilege 
was  endangered,  for  the  Kurfiirst  had  obtained  a  poor  opinion  of  our  pro- 
cess. Indeed,  so  long  as  the  Kurfiirst  Karl  Theodor  lived,  all  our  efforts  to 
obtain  a  privilege  were  fruitless.  We  could  not  even  succeed  in  having  it 
proposed,  although  the  referee,  Herr  von  Stubenrauch,  made  us  promises 
from  month  to  month. 

All  the  money  we  had  earned  was  lost;  debts  burdened  us;  and  a 
monthly  deduction  of  pay,  with  the  mocking  laughter  of  those  who  had 
been  made  envious  by  our  first  successes,  was  the  entire  reward  for  our 
endeavors  to  make  a  new  art.  As  it  was  only  the  lack  of  a  good  press  that 
had  caused  our  failure,  I  went  to  Herr  Falter,  with  whom  I  had  become 
acquainted  through  Herr  Gleissner,  and  told  him  the  reasons  for  not  fin- 
ishing the  cantata  in  time.  I  told  him  that  if  he  were  willing  to  have  a 
proper  press  built,  I  was  willing  to  print  his  works  for  him,  in  his  own  resi- 
dence, which  was  his  stipulation,  provided  I  could  prepare  the  stones  at 
home.  We  agreed,  and  I  ordered  a  great  cylinder  press  made  at  his 
expense.  To  avoid  the  old  trouble  I  had  both  cylinders  fitted  with  cogs, 
which  gave  satisfactory  results  if  both  printers  who  handled  the  press  were 
careful  to  begin  turning  the  cylinders  at  the  same  moment.  The  double 
friction  of  the  two  rollers  made  them  both  pull  on  the  printing-frame  and 
the  stone,  where,  before,  the  lower  cylinder  had  done  just  the  opposite. 
The  greater  periphery  of  the  upper  cylinder,  which  was  almost  fifteen 
inches  thick,  helped  also.  And  to  this  day  I  consider  this  form  of  press  the 
best  for  all  methods,  especially  if  the  stones  are  thick  enough,  if  one  has 
not  to  consider  the  very  greatest  speed ;  for  in  speed  this  press  is  decidedly 


FROM   1796   TO   1800  17 

inferior  to  the  lever  press  and  other  styles.  On  the  other  hand,  the  pressure 
is  much  more  gentle,  more  perpendicular,  and  less  liable  to  pull  the  paper 
out  of  place  than  is  possible  with  even  the  best  so-called  friction  presses. 
Only  there  should  be  added  to  the  cogs  an  appliance  by  which  the  upper 
cylinder  has  a  screw  adjusted  over  its  centre,  so  that  it  can  be  forced  down 
for  each  impression  after  the  stone  is  under  it.  Figure  i,  plate  i,  is  the 
picture  of  such  a  cylinder  press,  made  for  stone-printing. 

As  soon  as  the  press  was  ready  and  erected,  I  began  to  inscribe  on  stone 
the  music  of  Die  Zauherflote,  arranged  for  quartette  by  Herr  Danzy,  and 
with  Herr  Gleissner  we  began  the  printing. 

But  Herr  Gleissner  became  dangerously  ill.  I  trained  two  soldiers  to  do 
the  printing,  left  the  entire  printing  process  to  Herr  Falter,  and  limited 
myself  to  the  work  of  delivering  the  stones  to  him.  The  workers  ruined  so 
much  paper  that  Herr  Falter  could  not  make  it  pay,  and  returned  to  etch- 
ing on  copper. 

During  this  time  Herr  Schmidt,  professor  at  the  military  academy,  had 
begun  to  etch  on  stone.  As  I  discovered  long  afterwards,  he  was  a  good 
acquaintance  of  Herr  Gleissner,  who  visited  him  often.  Within  the  last 
year  there  is  a  strenuous  attempt  to  make  this  Herr  Schmidt  appear  to  be 
the  inventor  of  printing  from  stone,  though  probably  he  never  desired  this. 
There  have  been  publications  about  it  already.  I  shall  not  notice  what  has 
been  said,  and  will  let  the  matter  speak  for  itself.  From  the  foregoing  the 
reader  will  have  seen  the  natural  but  laborious  way  in  which  fate  led  me  to 
this  invention.  If  Herr  Schmidt  made  a  similar  discovery  at  that  time,  he 
was  much  more  fortunate  than  I.  According  to  his  own  letter,  printed  in 
the  Anzeigerfiir  Kunst  und  Gewerbfleiss,  the  course  of  his  invention  was  as 
follows.  He  saw  a  gravestone  in  the  Frauen-Kirche,  in  Munich,  on  which 
letters  and  pictures  were  in  relief.  "That  must  have  been  done  with  acid ; 
it  would  be  possible  to  print  from  it ! "  thought  he,  and  the  invention  was 
completed. 

If  it  is  so  easy  to  gain  the  honor  of  an  invention,  then,  indeed,  I  was 
unlucky  to  have  undergone  so  much  toil.  But  according  to  my  opinion, 
there  was  nothing  new  in  the  whole  discovery.  The  thought  that  "this 


i8  HISTORY   OF   STONE-PRINTING 

was  etched  "  assumed  the  invention  and  the  use  of  etching  beforehand. 
That  such  coarse,  thick,  and  highly  relieved  inscriptions  as  those  on  grave- 
stones could  be  inked  and  used  for  printing  would  strike  anybody  who 
knew  even  a  little  of  printing.  If,  however,  Herr  Schmidt  added  to  his  idea 
the  second,  that  fine  and,  therefore,  only  slighdy  elevated  inscriptions  and 
illustrations  could  be  inked  and  printed  with  the  aid  of  appliances  to  be 
invented  for  the  purpose,  —  if  he  did  this  and  executed  it  before  me,  or,  at 
least,  before  he  had  knowledge  of  my  work,  then  indeed  the  honor  belongs 
to  him  of  having  invented  mechanical  printing  from  stone,  either  before 
me  or  simultaneously.  But  as  a  matter  of  fact,  neither  he  nor  I  can  claim 
to  be  the  first  who  thought  of  using  stones  for  printing.  Only  the  "how  ?" 
is  the  new  thing  in  the  case. 

At  that  time  (1796)  I  had  not  invented  stone-printing,  but,  firstly,  an 
ink  available  for  writing  on  stone  and  resistant  to  acid,  which  ink  I  in- 
vented out  of  my  brains  and  not,  like  Herr  Schmidt,  out  of  an  old  Niirn- 
berg  book:  secondly,  I  invented  a  practical  tool  for  inking  the  slightly 
elevated  letters:  and  thirdly,  the  so-called  gallows  or  lever  press,  of  which 
I  shall  speak  later. 

As  I  do  not  know  what  were  the  circumstances  surrounding  Herr 
Schmidt  at  the  time,  and  I  cannot,  therefore,  make  any  inquiries,  I  am 
willing  to  take  his  word  if  he  will  declare  as  an  honest  man  that  he  printed 
from  stone  before  July,  1796.  That  his  method  of  printing  was  different 
from  mine,  and  that  he  had  absolutely  not  the  slightest  knowledge  of 
chemical  printing  from  stone,  which  I  invented  in  1798,  I  know  from 
indubitable  evidence. 

He  made  many  attempts  with  his  pupils  to  produce  drawings  on  stones, 
but  presumably  his  impressions  were  not  successful,  for  those  stones  that  I 
saw  afterward  at  Herr  Schulrath  Steiner's  had  been  etched  first  and  the 
spaces  then  engraved  away  very  deeply  with  all  sorts  of  steel  instruments, 
after  the  manner  of  wood-cuts,  so  that  they  might  properly  be  called  stone- 
cuts  in  relief.  He  had  these  stones  printed  in  the  Schul-fond's  book- 
printery,  and  I  hear  that  tlie  impressions  were  very  good.  I  saw  none 
myself. 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  19 

However,  Professor  Schmidt's  experiments  were  the  means  of  making 
me  acquainted  with  Herr  Schulrath  Steiner,  who  encouraged  me  so  much 
that  I  conceived  many  ideas  in  order  to  fulfill  his  wishes,  so  that  at  last  the 
art  of  printing  from  stone  achieved  its  present  honorable  position. 

Herr  Schulrath  Steiner,  an  intimate  friend  of  Professor  Schmidt,  was 
director  of  the  Schul-fond's  printery.  As  such  he  was  concerned  with 
many  prints.  Herr  Schmidt's  idea  of  publishing  stone-etched  pictures  of 
poisonous  plants  for  school  use  was  approved  by  him ;  and  as  the  attempts 
did  not  satisfy  him,  he  decided  to  turn  to  me.  At  that  time  the  Schul-fond 
was  to  print  some  church  songs.  This  gave  him  the  opportunity  of  visiting 
me.  He  asked  me  if  the  musical  notes  could  not  be  so  etched  or  cut  in 
relief  in  stone  that  they  could  be  made  up  with  ordinary  book-types  and 
thus  printed  in  the  ordinary  book-presses.  I  promised  to  try  it.  However, 
the  necessary  deep  engraving  of  the  spaces  was  too  laborious,  so  that  it 
would  have  been  easier  to  do  it  in  wood.  As  an  expedient  we  printed  the 
text  first  with  ordinary  types  in  the  book-press  and  then  printed  in  the 
music  with  stones  in  the  stone-press. 

Meantime  I  tried  to  attain  our  purpose  in  other  ways,  connected  with 
some  of  my  early  experiments.  My  best  success  was  with  the  following 
method.  On  a  stone  polished  with  sand  I  painted  a  layer,  equal  to  two  or 
three  card-thicknesses,  of  burned,  finely  powdered  gypsum,  butter,  and 
alum,  mixed  with  a  proper  amount  of  water.  As  soon  as  it  was  dry  I  in- 
scribed the  music  with  steel  needles  of  various  sizes  on  the  surface  of  the 
stone,  which  was  of  a  somewhat  dark,  almost  gray  color,  so  that  I  could  see 
it  more  easily  through  the  soft,  white  mass.  Having  finished  the  drawing  I 
took  warm  sealing-wax  smeared  on  wood,  and  applied  it  to  the  stone  while 
it  was  warm  with  a  hand-press.  After  cooling,  the  white  mass  was  fast  to 
the  sealing-wax  and  quite  loose  from  the  stone,  and  it  was  scrubbed  away 
clean  with  water  and  a  brush,  after  which  the  drawing  appeared  on  the 
wood  in  elevated  wax  extremely  clear  and  clean,  like  a  wood-cut.  The 
spaces  were  so  deep  that  the  plate  could  be  printed  in  regular  book-print- 
ing manner. 

Later  I  made  trial  of  a  composition  of  lead,  zinc,  and  bismuth,  and  this 


20  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

succeeds  thoroughly  with  proper  care.  So  here  we  would  have  still 
another  printing  process,  which  has  the  advantage  over  all  others  that 
the  inscription  need  not  be  made  reversed,  as  the  impression  on  the  wax 
or  lead  reverses  it  automatically. 

If  the  white  mass  is  laid  on  more  thickly,  one  can  make  the  handsomest 
patterns  for  calico  much  more  quickly  than  has  been  possible  heretofore 
with  wood-cuts.  A  little  more  care  is  necessary,  because  no  stroke  must  be 
made  entirely  through  the  mass,  when  it  is  laid  on  thick.  My  experiments 
in  that  direction  all  exceeded  expectations,  and  it  is  to  be  regretted  that 
I  had  no  opportunity  thereafter  to  perfect  this  invention  more,  or  use 
it  practically.  The  experiments  had  no  value  even  for  Herr  Schulrath 
Steiner,  for  whom  I  made  them,  as  he  never  had  use  for  the  process  after- 
ward. Indeed,  I  would  have  forgotten  the  matter  almost  entirely,  if  it  had 
not  been  brought  back  to  mind  by  this  work  of  writing  my  story.  In  the 
second  part  of  this  book,  in  describing  stone-printing  itself,  I  will  show 
various  methods  of  making  patterns  for  work  on  cotton,  such  as  I  con- 
ceived later  in  Vienna  where  I  busied  myself  very  much  with  cotton- 
printing. 

I  happened  to  print  for  Herr  Lentner  a  little  song  about  the  great  fire  of 
Neuotting  in  Bavaria  and  used  a  little  vignette  showing  a  burning  house. 
This  induced  Herr  Steiner  to  let  me  etch  a  few  small  pictures  for  a  cate- 
chism. So  far  as  execution  of  drawing  goes,  they  were  very  ordinary ;  but 
he  continued  to  encourage  me  to  try  if  the  new  printing  process  would  not 
be  available  for  art  work.  With  the  exception  of  Herr  Andre  of  Offenbach, 
he  was  the  only  one  who  reasoned  thus :  "  These  strokes  and  points,  of  such 
great  fineness  and  again  of  such  great  strength,  can  evidently  be  made  on 
the  stone,  therefore  it  is  possible  to  make  drawings  similar  to  copper-plate 
etchings.  That  this  cannot  be  done  yet  is  due  not  to  a  fault  in  the  art  of 
stone-printing,  but  to  the  insuflficient  skill  of  the  artists." 

Even  at  that  time  he  did  not  say:  "The  art  is  still  in  its  infancy,"  as 
many  a  would-be  wise  man  does  to-day,  thus  exposing  his  lack  of  know- 
ledge of  the  entire  matter.  Even  at  that  time  he  was  convinced,  more  so 
even  than  I,  that  the  art  of  stone-printing  had  reached  its  climax  when  I 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  21 

gave  him  the  first  specimens  of  stone-printing  improved  by  the  chemical 
process.  Artists  might  cultivate  and  perfect  themselves,  manipulation  be 
simplified  and  processes  be  increased  in  number  and  variety,  but  the  art 
itself  could  not  be  improved  greatly. 

To  be  sure,  when  I  glance  hurriedly  over  the  manifold  results  of  the  last 
twenty  years,  all  that  I  have  done  myself  for  perfection,  the  brilliant 
achievements  of  which  this  book  will  furnish  proof,  I  am  tempted  to  think 
for  a  moment  that  the  Now  and  the  Then  cannot  be  compared.  But  con- 
sidered correctly,  I  had  invented  and  discovered  the  entire  art  at  that  time. 
Everything  that  I  and  others  have  done  since  then  are  only  improvements. 
Everything  rests  still  on  the  same  principle :  ink  of  wax,  soap,  etc.,  then 
gum,  aqua  fortis  or  another  acid  of  which  none  has  an  advantage  over  the 
others,  further  oil  varnish  and  lampblack,  —  these  are,  ever  and  in  the 
same  manner,  the  chief  elements  of  stone-printing  as  they  were  then.  Not 
the  slightest  thing  has  been  changed,  improved,  or  invented  in  the  fun- 
damental principle.  No  illustration  has  been  published  by  any  lithogra- 
pher containing  cleaner,  stronger,  or  blacker  lines  and  points  than  my  first 
proofs  had  in  part. 

Therefore,  those  people  are  wrong  who  seek  to  excuse  the  lack  of 
assistance  that  I  received  in  the  beginning,  by  alleging  that  at  the  time  no 
one  knew  if  the  process  could  be  used  to  any  great  extent.  They  declare 
many  productions  of  the  present  day  to  be  far  better,  simply  because  the 
illustrator  is  more  skillful,  though  in  truth  the  printing  is  not  so  good  as 
many  of  the  first  ones  made  by  me.  It  has  even  happened  that  the  asser- 
tion has  found  its  way  into  print  that  I  had  invented  only  the  rough  part 
of  the  art,  and  never  had  been  able  to  use  it  for  more  than  music-printing, 
whereas  this  one  or  that  one  are  the  true  artists,  having  succeeded  in  pro- 
ducing pictures. 

These  gentlemen,  who  are  so  quick  with  verdicts,  should  inform  them- 
selves a  little.  They  would  discover  that  aside  from  me  (with  the  exception 
of  Professor  Mitterer's  invention  of  the  cylinder  press),  nobody  has  made 
a  noteworthy  improvement  in  the  branches  of  lithography  without  having 
received  it  primarily  or  indirectly  through  me.  Further  they  would  have 


22  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

learned  that  these  illustrators  either  made  their  first  attempts  under  my 
personal  direction,  or  else  owe  their  skill  to  persons  whom  I  taught ;  and 
lastly,  that  none  of  my  critics  can  boast  of  having  penetrated  into  the  very 
inmost  spirit  of  the  art  like  only  Herr  Rapp  of  Munich,  the  venerable 
author  of  the  work  published  by  Cotta,  The  Secret  oj  Lithography.  If 
they  learned  all  this,  they  might  feel  a  little  ashamed.  But  then,  they 
would  have  much  to  do. 

Had  my  skill  in  writing  and  drawing  on  stone  been  greater  at  that  time, 
Herr  Steiner  would  have  given  me  opportunity  enough  and  manifold.  He 
permitted  me  to  do  a  small  book.  Rules  for  Girls,  in  German  script, 
which,  on  the  whole,  turned  out  of  only  average  quality,  as  I  had  not  prac- 
ticed this  style  sufficiently. 

Then  he  wanted  me  to  draw  Biblical  pictures  on  stone  or  to  let  others 
draw  them.  At  that  time  he  was  having  Herr  Schon  in  Augsburg  etch  the 
Seven  Holy  Sacraments  after  Poussin.  As  the  etching  was  expensive,  the 
impressions  could  not  be  sold  for  less  than  four  kreuzer  each.  Herr  Steiner 
wished  to  circulate  these  pictures  so  generally  that  they  could  serve  as 
gifts  from  the  country  preachers  to  their  little  Christian  pupils.  He  wished, 
also,  to  ornament  various  school-books  with  pictures  of  this  kind,  and  thus, 
gradually,  to  replace  the  miserably  drawn  species  of  saints  that  generally 
fill  the  prayer-books  of  the  pious  households. 

Only  the  utmost  cheapness  could  make  this  possible,  and  this  naturally 
suggested  the  stone  process  to  him.  Even  if  the  pictures  were  not  so  fine 
as  those  etched  on  copper,  they  would  serve  amply  if  they  were  correctly 
drawn,  noble  in  design,  and  handsomely  printed.  It  was  necessary  either 
to  draw  myself  and  practice  faithfully,  or  to  train  a  skilled  artist  to  draw 
with  fatty  ink  on  stone.  We  preferred  the  latter  method  and  trained  sev- 
eral young  men,  who  produced  various  works,  sometimes  good,  sometimes 
inferior. 

Through  all  this  I  ran  more  and  more  danger  of  losing  my  secret.  In- 
deed, it  was  lost  already  except  perhaps  so  far  as  concerned  the  exact  com- 
position of  the  ink.  But  I  hoped  still  to  obtain  the  privilege  for  Bavaria, 
toward  which  end  the  Schulrath  promised  me  his  best  aid,  and  so  I  let  the 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  23 

matter  proceed,  and  trained  the  men.  But  among  all  these  young  men 
there  was  not  one  who  did  not  desire  a  substantial  reward  for  his  very  first 
attempts,  and  when  they  found  that  they  were  expected  first  to  learn,  they 
stayed  away,  one  by  one.  Herr  Steiner  was  hurt.  I,  however,  was  indiff^er- 
ent,  for  I  was  just  beginning  to  plan  to  use  a  new  and  important  discovery 
in  such  a  manner  that  my  stone-printing  would  be  greatly  improved  and 
we  could  hope  to  carry  out  our  idea  of  illustrations  without  the  aid  of 
artists. 

I  had  been  assigned  to  write  a  prayer-book  on  stone  for  the  Schul-fond. 
It  was  mostly  in  a  style  of  writing  in  which  I  was  least  expert.  When  I 
wrote  music  notes,  our  method,  proved  best  by  experience,  had  been  to 
write  the  entire  sheet  in  reverse  on  the  stone  with  lead  pencil  to  serve  as 
pattern.  This  was  mostly  Herr  Gleissner's  work,  and  being  a  musician  he 
had  achieved  great  perfection.  For  me  this  preparatory  work  was  far  less 
agreeable  than  the  final  execution  with  the  stone-ink.  Therefore,  as  ever 
in  my  life,  when  a  difficulty  or  a  burden  was  before  me,  I  studied  for  some 
way  to  make  it  easier  for  me.  Previously  I  had  found  that  if  one  wrote  on 
paper  with  good  English  lead  pencils,  then  moistened  the  paper,  laid  it  on 
a  polished  stone  and  passed  it  through  a  powerful  press,  a  good  impression 
was  the  result.  I  had  used  the  method  on  various  occasions.  I  wished  that 
I  possessed  an  ink  that  could  be  used  the  same  way.  Trials  showed  that 
fine  red  chalk  needed  merely  to  be  rubbed  down  gently  in  a  solution  of 
gum,  and  that  even  the  ordinary  writing-ink  of  nut  gall  and  vitriol  of  iron 
would  serve  when  mixed  with  a  little  sugar.  But  this  did  not  satisfy  my 
ambition,  which  always  demanded  the  best  and  most  perfect.  The  gum  in 
one  and  the  vitriol  in  the  other  did  not  agree  well  with  the  stone-ink.  In 
addition,  the  impression  often  squashed.  Therefore  I  tried  a  mixture  in 
water  of  linseed  oil,  soap,  and  lampblack  which  met  my  demands  better. 
I  had  a  music-writer  write  notes  correctly  on  note-paper  with  this  ink, 
printed  it  on  the  stone,  and  thus  had  an  accurate  pattern,  which  was  at  the 
same  time  reversed,  as  was  necessary. 

I  now  planned  to  do  this  with  the  book.  But  why  could  I  not  invent  an 
ink  that  would  serve  on  the  stone  without  making  it  necessary  to  trace  over 


24  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

it  with  the  stone-ink  ?  Why  not  make  an  ink  that  would  leave  the  paper 
under  pressure  and  transfer  itself  to  the  stone  entirely  ?  Could  one  give 
the  paper  itself  some  property  so  that  it  would  let  go  of  the  ink  under 
given  conditions  ?  So  reflected  I,  and  it  seemed  to  me  not  impossible.  At 
once  I  began  to  experiment.  I  had  observed  that  the  stone-ink  at  once  be- 
gan to  congeal  and  stifi^en  when  it  came  into  contact  with  ordinary  writing- 
ink,  because  of  the  action  of  the  vitriol  of  iron,  which  devoured  the  alkali 
that  the  stone-ink  needed  to  keep  it  in  solution.  Therefore  I  wrote  with 
ordinary  ink,  into  which  I  put  still  more  vitriol  of  iron.  After  it  was  dry,  I 
dipped  the  sheet  into  a  weak  solution  in  water  of  my  stone-ink.  After  a  few 
seconds  I  withdrew  it  and  washed  it  very  gently  in  rainwater.  I  found  that 
the  ink  had  fastened  itself  on  the  written  places,  and  pretty  thickly,  too.  I 
allowed  the  paper  to  dry  slightly  and  transferred  the  writing  to  the  stone. 
The  impression  was  fair,  but  not  sufficiently  complete.  I  tried  it  repeatedly 
but  could  obtain  no  transfers  that  were  sharp  and  uniform  enough  to  rep- 
resent a  handsome  script.  So  I  tried  another  way.  I  painted  the  paper 
with  gum  solution  in  which  vitriol  of  iron  was  dissolved.  After  it  dried  I 
wrote  on  it  with  my  ordinary  stone-ink  and  dried  it  again.  Then  I  damp- 
ened the  paper  and  let  it  lie  a  while  to  soften,  after  which  I  transferred  it 
to  the  stone,  which  had  been  treated  with  strong  oil  varnish  diluted  in  oil 
of  turpentine,  laid  on  so  lightly  that  it  was  only  like  the  blurring  from 
a  breath. 

These  attempts  were  far  more  successful,  but  it  was  impossible  to  write 
as  delicately  on  this  paper  as  I  desired.  Therefore  I  made  new  experi- 
ments. I  changed  the  mixture  of  my  ink.  I  tried  to  make  it  more  adhesive 
with  mixtures  of  resin,  oil  varnish,  gum  elastic,  turpentine,  mastic,  and  sim- 
ilar substances.  In  short,  I  do  not  exaggerate  when  I  declare  that  this  mat- 
ter cost  me  several  thousands  of  experiments.  I  was  rewarded  sufficiently 
by  succeeding.  And  at  the  same  time  through  these  investigations  I  dis- 
covered the  chemical  printing  on  stone  of  to-day. 

As  the  transfer  from  paper  to  stone  depended  mainly  on  the  greater  or 
lesser  powers  of  adhesion  between  one  material  and  another,  it  was  nat- 
ural that  in  my  many  experiments  with  such  various  ingredients  I  should 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  25 

observe  that  a  mucous  fluid,  as,  for  instance,  the  gum  solution,  resisted 
the  adhesion  of  the  greasy  ink.  Nearer  still  to  the  new  invention  did  the 
following  experiment  bring  me :  I  noticed  that  if  there  happened  to  be  a 
few  drops  of  oil  in  the  water  into  which  I  dipped  paper  inscribed  with  my 
greasy  stone-ink,  the  oil  would  distribute  itself  evenly  over  all  parts  of  the 
writing,  whereas  the  rest  of  the  paper  would  take  no  oil,  and  especially  so 
if  it  had  been  treated  with  gum  solution  or  very  thin  starch  paste.  This 
fact  led  me  to  investigate  the  behavior  of  paper  printed  with  common 
printing-ink. 

A  sheet  of  an  old  book  was  drawn  through  thin  gum  solution,  then  laid 
on  a  stone  and  touched  carefully  everywhere  with  a  sponge  that  had  been 
dipped  into  a  thin  oil  color.  The  printed  letters  took  the  color  well  every- 
where and  the  paper  itself  remained  white.  Now  I  laid  another  clean  white 
sheet  on  this,  put  both  through  the  press,  and  obtained  a  very  good  trans- 
fer, in  reverse,  of  course.  In  this  manner,  if  I  used  great  care,  I  found  I 
could  make  fifty  and  more  transfers  from  the  same  sheet.  If  I  allowed  such 
a  transfer  to  dry  thoroughly  and  then  treated  it  like  the  original  sheet,  why 
should  it  not  produce  transfers  that  are  like  the  original,  not  reversed  ? 
So  thought  I,  and  the  result  showed  that  I  had  not  been  wrong!  Only  for 
the  first  transfer  I  needed  to  use  a  somewhat  stiifer  color  that  had  been 
dried  more  with  litharge  of  silver,  and  then  to  let  the  transfer  dry  for  at 
least  four  or  six  days. 

So  I  came  to  find  that  I  could  print  without  a  stone,  from  the  paper 
alone ;  and  this  process,  depending  solely  on  chemical  action,  was  totally, 
fundamentally  different  from  all  other  processes  of  printing. 

Old  books  could  be  republished  in  this  manner  easily  and  without  great 
cost.  New  ones  also.  I  needed  only  to  invent  a  fatty  ink,  similar  to  the 
printing-ink  and  drying  thoroughly,  and  I  could  use  every  sheet  of  printed 
paper  instead  of  type.  I  invented  this  ink  soon.  Resin,  finely  pulverized 
litharge  of  silver,  lampblack,  thick  oil  varnish,  and  potash  properly  di- 
luted with  water  gave  me  a  good  ink  for  the  purpose.  The  only  obstacle 
that  prevented  me  from  using  this  process  at  once  on  a  large  scale  was  the 
fragility  of  the  paper,  which  tore  into  pieces  under  the  slightest  careless- 


26  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

ness  in  handling.  The  natural  and  simple  thought  that  was  bound  to 
come  to  me  under  the  circumstances  was  this,  Could  not  a  stronger  ma- 
terial, perhaps  the  stone  plate  itself,  be  so  prepared  that  it  would  take  ink 
or  color  only  on  the  parts  covered  with  fatty  ink,  while  the  wet  parts  of  the 
stone  resisted  it  ?  I  feared  that  the  stone  might  not  absorb  the  grease  suf- 
ficiently, and  this  really  is  the  case  with  many  stones,  such  as  slate,  pebble, 
grindstone,  glass,  porcelain,  etc. ;  but  experiments  showed  that  exactly  the 
opposite  is  true  in  the  case  of  the  Solenhofer  limestone.  This  stone  has  a 
great  aflSnity  for  fat,  which  often  is  absorbed  so  deeply  that  in  many  cases 
even  extensive  grinding  will  not  remove  it. 

I  took  a  cleanly  polished  stone,  inscribed  it  with  a  piece  of  soap,  poured 
thin  gum  solution  over  it  and  passed  over  all  with  a  sponge  dipped  in  oil 
color.  All  the  places  marked  with  the  fat  became  black  at  once,  the  rest 
remained  white.  I  could  make  as  many  impressions  as  I  pleased ;  simply 
wetting  the  stone  after  each  impression  and  treating  it  again  with  the 
sponge  produced  the  same  result  each  time.  The  impressions  became 
somewhat  pale,  because  the  color  on  the  sponge  was  too  thin ;  but  I 
obtained  perfectly  black  and  handsome  impressions  as  soon  as  I  used  an 
ink  roller  of  leather  stuffed  with  horse-hair. 

I  hurried  to  write  a  sheet  of  note  music  at  once  to  print  it  in  the  new  way; 
but  the  ink  flowed  too  much  on  the  polished  stone.  Previously  I  had  cor- 
rected this  by  rubbing  the  stone  with  linseed  oil  or  soap-water,  which 
checked  the  trouble  entirely.  But  I  knew  that  I  could  not  do  that  in  this 
new  method,  because  then  the  stone  would  have  a  coating  of  grease  all 
over,  and  would  take  color  on  the  entire  surface.  However,  I  was  able  to 
take  this  coating  away  after  writing,  by  etching  with  aqua  fortis,  though 
etching  would  not  have  been  necessary  otherwise  in  this  chemical  form  of 
printing.  However,  it  was  easy  to  see  that  a  drawing  etched  into  relief 
would  be  easier  to  print  from  than  one  not  etched  at  all.  It  did  not  require 
much  etching,  and  I  saved  a  great  deal  of  acid,  while  the  stone,  also,  re- 
mained useful  for  new  work  for  a  much  longer  period.  Therefore,  without 
making  further  experiments,  I  adhered  to  my  old  method,  first  washing 
the  stone  lightly  with  soap-water,  drying  it  well,  writing  on  it  with  wax  ink, 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  27 

and  then  etching  with  acid  before  I  finished  it  for  printing  by  pouring  gum 
solution  over  it. 

At  first  I  imagined  that  I  might  do  without  the  gum  entirely;  but  I 
found  soon  that  it  really  formed  a  sort  of  chemical  union  with  the  stone, 
making  its  pores  more  receptive  to  the  grease  and  closing  them  more  effec- 
tively against  water.  I  found  also  that  neither  aqua  fortis  nor  gum  was  so 
valuable  alone  as  when  both  were  used  in  the  process. 

I  needed  to  make  only  a  few  more  experiments  to  obtain  the  proper  con- 
sistency of  ink,  and  the  new  process  would  be  practically  perfect  so  far  as 
the  fundamental  principle  was  concerned.  And,  in  fact,  I  made  such  hand- 
some, clean,  and  strong  impressions  after  three  days  of  trial  diat  few  bet- 
ter ones  have  been  made  since.  Now  it  was  necessary  merely  to  train  skill- 
ful workmen  and  artists  as  quickly  as  possible  for  this  new  art,  that  was 
susceptible  of  innumerable  valuable  uses,  as  I  could  see  at  once. 

It  made  no  difference  now  whether  the  design  was  worked  in  relief  or 
intaglio,  as  good  impressions  could  be  obtained  even  when  the  drawing 
was  perfectly  level  with  the  surface  of  the  stone.  But  all  three  methods 
could  be  combined  on  one  stone,  if  desired.  If  I  reversed  the  method,  by 
rubbing  oil  over  the  stone  instead  of  water,  while  for  printing  I  used  an  ink 
prepared  with  gum  solution  (of  which  I  will  describe  the  best  composition 
afterward),  then  the  greasy  places  would  resist  color  while  the  wet  ones 
took  it,  and  thus  I  could  print  with  all  water  colors,  and  this  is  necessary 
sometimes  with  colored  pictures  because  of  the  greater  height  of  the  colors. 
The  inscription  with  dry  soap  gave  me  the  logical  idea  toward  crayon 
work,  which  I  used  afterward.  My  previous  experiments  with  etching, 
that  recurred  to  my  memory,  now  assumed  entirely  different  aspects  and 
I  could  understand  many  things  that  had  puzzled  me  then. 

It  was  a  simple  step  now  to  the  etched  method,  in  which  the  stone  is 
prepared  first  with  aqua  fortis  and  gum,  after  which  the  design  is  engraved 
in  intaglio  without  first  being  treated  with  aqua  fortis.  Indeed,  this 
method  was  used  for  the  first  work  that  I  undertook. 

A  piece  of  music  by  Herr  Gleissner  (which  afterward  was  greatly 
praised  in  the  musical  paper)  had  been  completed  before  I  invented  the 


28  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

new  process.  Only  the  title-page  remained  to  do.  As  I  wished  to  make 
this  as  handsome  as  possible,  since  Herr  Gleissner  intended  to  dedicate 
the  work  to  Count  von  Torring,  I  chose  this  new  intaglio  style,  because  I 
hoped  to  do  my  best  work  in  it.  Any  one  who  still  possesses  a  copy  of  this 
symphony  can  see  by  slight  examination  that  the  printing  was  done  from 
an  etched  engraving.  Therefore  Herr  Rapp  in  Stuttgart  is  mistaken  when 
he  assumes  that  he  is  the  first  who  treated  the  stone  in  this  manner.  As 
early  as  the  year  1800  I  deposited  in  the  archives  of  the  Patent  Office  in 
London  a  full  description  of  this  and  several  other  methods,  some  of 
which  have  not  been  used  yet  generally,  and  in  1803  I  had  to  submit  my 
descriptions  to  the  Austrian  Government  when  they  gave  me  a  franchise. 

A  year  before  this,  I  had  invented  the  lever  press,  with  which  I  could 
make  several  thousand  of  the  handsomest  impressions  during  a  day. 
This,  combined  with  the  new  treatment  of  the  stone,  enabled  me  to  en- 
large my  operations  greatly.  I  took  in  two  of  my  brothers,  Theobald  and 
George,  who  had  been  in  the  theatre  hitherto,  and  taught  them  to  write 
and  etch  on  stone.  Also  I  took  in  two  boy  apprentices,  sons  of  poor  par- 
ents, to  train  them  properly.  Herr  Schulrath  Steiner  and  Herr  Falter,  with 
several  others,  gave  me  various  orders,  and  a  pretty  good  outlook  began  to 
appear  for  me  and  Herr  Gleissner. 

Until  now  we  had  been  forced  to  suffer  much  grief,  disappointment, 
deprivation,  and  poverty.  Herr  Gleissner's  salary  was  only  three  hundred 
gulden  a  year.  A  yearly  deduction  of  one  hundred  gulden  was  being  made 
from  this  by  the  Government  to  pay  debts.  Then  there  were  new  expenses 
to  repair  the  printery  and  keep  it  in  some  sort  of  order.  My  support  and 
that  of  the  family  Gleissner,  — which  consisted  of  five  persons,  — then  a 
larger  residence,  on  account  of  the  room  needed  for  stones  and  for  print- 
ing, also  had  to  be  paid  for.  My  own  yearly  earnings  were  barely  a  few 
hundred  gulden,  as  most  of  my  time  was  used  for  experiments.  It  is  no 
wonder,  then,  that  during  this  sad  period  of  two  years,  we  spent  almost  all 
that  could  be  spent  of  Herr  Gleissner's  estate,  and  still  made  new  debts, 
despite  all  imaginable  economies. 

I  can  say  for  the  honor  of  this  man,  and  especially  his  wife,  that,  despite 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  29 

all  their  losses  and  despite  the  warnings  and  inciting  of  their  friends  and 
relatives,  they  remained  unshaken,  and  by  making  all  kinds  of  sacrifices 
they  enabled  me  to  win  at  last.  On  my  part  they  saw  faidiful  and  eager 
will,  and  a  restless  endeavor  that  went  so  far  that  I  hardly  took  any  time 
for  eating  or  sleeping,  but  thought  only  of  improving  my  art. 

Now,  however,  our  condition  was  changed  at  once.  Many  days  we 
earned  as  much  as  ten  to  twelve  gulden ;  and  at  the  same  time  we  received 
an  exclusive  franchise  for  fifteen  years  through  the  favor  of  King  Maxi- 
milian Joseph,  who  began  his  glorious  reign  then.  This  privilege  gave  us 
the  right  to  print  and  sell  exclusively  in  all  of  Bavaria,  while  infringers 
were  liable  to  a  fine  of  one  hundred  gulden  and  confiscation  of  all  stock 
and  apparatus. 

We  were  determined  to  do  our  utmost,  to  work  day  and  night,  to  estab- 
lish an  honorable  reputation  for  our  printery  at  last,  though  we  foresaw 
many  obstacles,  owing  to  the  endre  lack  of  assistance.  Already  I  had  half- 
determined  to  contract  with  the  Schul-fond,  permitting  it  to  establish  a 
lithographic  press  for  its  own  use,  when  an  accidental  circumstance  gave 
our  whole  undertaking  a  new  direcdon. 

Depending  on  the  protection  given  to  us  by  our  franchise,  we  were 
making  no  further  secret  of  any  part  of  our  process.  We  were  quite  con- 
tent with  having  the  monopoly  in  Bavaria,  and  cared  little  that  other  prin- 
teries  might  arise  in  other  countries.  Indeed,  this  expectation  flattered  my 
vanity  as  inventor,  and  I  thought  that  in  time  I  might  make  commercial 
connections  with  such  establishments.  For  this  reason  I  was  very  hospi- 
table toward  every  stranger  who  came  to  visit  us.  I  hoped  that  perhaps 
I  might  induce  some  such  visitor  to  participate  in  our  undertaking,  and 
therefore  I  exhibited  all  the  advantages  of  the  process  and  permitted  them 
to  see  the  manipulations  with  their  own  eyes. 

Just  then  Herr  Andre  of  Offenbach  visited  Munich  on  business.  He 
read  about  the  grant  of  our  franchise  and  asked  his  friend  Falter  about  the 
process.  That  gentleman  showed  him  some  sheets  of  music  printed  by  us 
and  offered  to  introduce  him  to  our  printery,  where,  as  technical  expert,  he 
could  decide  for  himself  as  to  the  value  or  worthlessness  of  the  new  art. 


30  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Herr  Andre,  who  possessed  an  extensive  musical  publishing  institution 
and  owned  a  large  zinc-plate  printing-plant,  was  delighted  with  the 
beauty  of  our  print,  and  was  especially  impressed  by  the  fact  that  the  color 
did  not  off-set  when  rubbed  with  the  hand,  as  was  the  case  with  zinc 
printing.  He  accepted  Herr  Faker's  offer  at  once  and  was  introduced  as 
a  merchant.  The  attention  with  which  he  noted  even  the  slightest  opera- 
tions led  me  to  conclude  at  once  that  this  man  had  some  especial  interest 
in  printing.  I  took  particular  pains  to  display  the  whole  process  to  the 
best  advantage. 

Several  plates  that  were  already  inscribed  were  etched  and  printed  with 
beautiful  results.  The  speed  (seventy-five  sheets  in  a  quarter-hour,  two 
being  printed  simultaneously  each  time),  the  quickness  of  drying,  the 
economy  in  color,  were  things  that  increased  his  interest  to  a  high  pitch. 
He  told  who  he  was  and  proposed  to  me  that  I  teach  him  the  entire  art  for 
an  adequate  remuneration.  I  accepted  at  once  and  agreed  to  go  to  Offen- 
bach within  a  few  months,  erect  a  press,  and  train  men  in  all  branches  of 
the  process.  For  this  he  promised  me  the  sum  of  two  thousand  gulden, 
of  which  he  paid  down  three  hundred  gulden  on  the  spot. 

This  change  from  poverty  to  comfort  made  me  happy  mainly  on  Herr 
Gleissner's  account.  We  could  furnish  our  printery  properly  now  and 
pay  our  old  debts.  We  were  assured,  also,  of  enough  work  to  permit 
enlargement  of  the  establishment  in  future.  What  was  there  left  to 
wish  ? 

In  the  very  beginning,  however,  the  behavior  of  my  own  family  gave  me 
great  displeasure.  My  mother  demanded  that  I  share  my  profit  with  my 
brothers,  as  they  had  a  better  right  than  Herr  Gleissner  and  his  family. 
I  could  not  quite  see  this ;  therefore  my  mother  ordered  a  press  for  my 
brothers  and  bought  the  necessary  stones.  They  went  to  Herr  Falter  and 
asked  him  for  his  work,  representing  that  I  had  made  my  fortune  through 
Herr  Andre,  whereas  they  were  unprovided  for.  They  offered  at  the  same 
time  to  furnish  each  plate  for  thirty  kreuzer  less  than  I  charged.  Herr 
Falter  permitted  himself  to  be  convinced,  and  when  Madame  Gleissner 
discovered  it  she  was  intensely  angry,  and  did  not  rest  till  the  Government 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  31 

ordered  my  brothers  to  refrain  from  utilizing  the  process  in  Bavaria  for 
their  own  account. 

My  brothers  went  to  Augsburg  to  erect  a  stone-press  for  Herr  Gombart. 
They  must  have  been  unequal  to  the  attempt  or  tliere  must  have  been 
other  difficulties :  in  brief,  I  know  only  that,  after  Herr  Gombart  had 
incurred  many  useless  expenses,  he  discarded  printing  from  stone. 

During  the  three  months  before  my  journey  to  Offenbach  I  practiced 
my  art  busily,  and  especially  studied  to  attain  thoroughness  in  one  branch 
that  was  of  importance  to  Herr  Schulrath  Steiner.  I  have  spoken  already 
of  his  idea  for  pictures  for  children.  As  soon  as  I  had  invented  the  new 
chemical  printing,  I  thought  of  inking  an  etched  copper  plate  with  a  com- 
position of  tallow,  soap,  lampblack,  and  oil  varnish,  making  an  impres- 
sion, laying  this  on  stone,  and  putting  it  through  the  press.  The  picture 
transferred  itself  to  the  stone  as  I  had  expected.  Then  I  poured  the  water 
and  gum  solution  over  it  and  inked  it  with  the  ink  roller.  The  design  took 
the  color  well ;  and  thus,  if  the  stone  was  very  clean  in  the  beginning  and 
the  proof  from  the  copper  had  been  made  very  carefully  indeed,  I  could 
print  several  thousands  of  copies  which  resembled  the  original  so  closely 
that  only  a  slightly  greater  degree  of  sharpness,  clearness,  and  strength 
gave  the  copper  etching  an  advantage  over  the  stone  impressions.  At  last  I 
succeeded  in  perfecting  the  process  so  that  actually  my  best  impressions 
from  the  stone  were  better  than  those  that  had  been  made  with  less  care 
from  the  original  copperplate. 

The  main  requisite  in  this  process  was  that  the  ink  be  firm  enough  not 
to  spread  in  printing,  and  still  so  greasy  and  tender  that  the  very  finest 
lines  would  come  out.  The  copper  plate  had  to  be  washed  with  extraor- 
dinary care,  for  the  least  bit  of  grease  that  should  off^-set  on  the  white 
paper  would,  of  course,  transfer  itself  to  the  stone  and  make  that  part  take 
color. 

This  latter  circumstance  was  intensely  difficult  to  overcome.  It  occurred 
to  me  to  treat  the  copper  plate  chemically,  like  the  stone,  so  that  its  surface 
would  resist  the  ink.  I  succeeded,  as,  in  future,  I  succeeded  with  other 
metals.  The  fundamental  principle  in  each  case  remained  the  same.  Only 


32  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

in  the  choice  of  materials  for  each  metal  was  there  a  difference.  I  dis- 
covered soon  that  there  are  two  kinds  of  preparations,  one  acid  and  one 
alkaline,  for  all  solid  bodies  which  have  the  property  of  taking  and 
absorbing  oil  colors.  The  alkalines  seemed  to  be  best  for  use  on  copper 
plate,  and  I  obtained  such  clean  impressions  that  the  stone  did  not  take  on 
even  a  vestige  of  ink  in  any  spot  except  the  design.  At  the  same  time  I 
found  that  chemical  printing  does  not  limit  itself  to  stone,  but  can  be  done 
on  wood  and  metal,  as  well  as  on  paper,  as  stated  already.  Yes,  though 
apparently  it  is  incredible  — even  fats,  such  as  wax,  shellac,  resin,  etc., 
can  acquire  the  attribute,  under  certain  circumstances,  of  resisting  color, 
and,  therefore,  are  available  for  chemical  printing.  This  fact  gave  me 
hopes  of  discovering  a  sort  of  artificial  stone  some  day,  which  might  be 
less  costly,  less  massive,  and  less  fragile ;  and,  as  a  matter  of  fact,  I  suc- 
ceeded in  inventing  an  artificial  stone-paper  in  1813,  a  stony  mass  that  is 
smeared  on  paper  or  linen  and  looks  somewhat  like  parchment. 

Since  the  illustrations  on  etched  copper  plates  were  so  readily  transfer- 
able to  the  stone,  Herr  Schulrath  Steiner  could  now  let  the  best  masters 
etch  his  pictures.  The  sales  of  the  original  impressions  as  works  of  art 
always  covered  the  costs.  He  paid  me  five  gulden  for  each  transfer  that  I 
made  from  the  copper  to  stone.  For  this  extremely  small  sum  he  obtained  a 
stone  plate  from  which  there  could  be  made  countless  impressions,  which, 
although  not  so  fine  as  those  from  the  copper,  answered  his  purpose  of  cir- 
culating good  pictures  by  making  them  extremely  cheap.  Lively  prosecu- 
tion of  this  process  was  prevented  only  by  the  delays  of  copper  etchers,  so 
that  we  were  able  to  utilize  it  only  five  times  on  a  large  scale  before  I  had 
to  leave  Munich. 

Herr  Gleissner,  who  wished  to  visit  a  friend  in  Frankfurt,  accompanied 
me  on  my  way  to  Offenbach.  I  started  at  once  on  the  new  work  and  within 
fourteen  days  I  pulled  the  first  proof  on  Herr  Andre's  own  press.  He  was 
so  well  satisfied,  and,  besides,  had  so  thoroughly  considered  the  advan- 
tages of  stone-printing,  that  he  proposed  to  me  to  leave  Munich  entirely 
and,  with  him  as  associate,  extend  the  art  in  the  best  possible  way.  He  had 
three  brothers,  none  of  whom  was  engaged  in  a  fixed  occupation.  He 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  33 

intended  to  bring  these  into  the  partnership.  Two  were  in  London, 
the  youngest  and  the  eldest.  The  latter  was  to  return  soon.  One  brother 
had  lived  long  in  Paris,  and  was  well  acquainted  with  that  city  as  well  as 
with  French  affairs.  So  he  laid  out  the  following  plan.  We  would  try  to 
obtain  exclusive  franchises  in  Paris,  London,  Berlin,  and  Vienna.  Then 
a  stone-printery  and  art  publication  house  was  to  be  opened  in  each  city. 
His  brothers  should  manage  affairs,  one  each  in  London,  Paris,  and  Ber- 
lin, while  I  was  to  take  the  management  in  Vienna.  Offenbach  and  Frank- 
furt would  remain  under  Herr  Andre's  management  and  be  the  centre  of 
control  and  union. 

The  plan  seemed  to  be  easy  to  realize,  as  there  was  no  lack  of  means.  I 
could  look  for  one  fifth  of  the  profits  which  would  be  earned  by  the  com- 
bined, very  considerable  capital  of  the  Andre  family.  In  addition,  Herr 
Andre  possessed  all  the  requisite  knowledge  and  owned  a  great  business 
already.  Therefore  I  agreed  gladly,  after  making  the  condition  that  Herr 
Gleissner  was  to  remain  a  partner  of  mine  and  receive  a  decent  remunera- 
tion till  the  business  was  in  working  order. 

Herr  Andre  was  well  content,  for  Herr  Gleissner  could  be  used  as  com- 
positor, corrector,  and  writer  in  the  business,  which  was  to  consist  largely 
of  music  publication  in  the  beginning. 

Herr  Gleissner  and  I  returned  to  Munich  to  arrange  our  affairs  there. 
He  intended  to  ask  for  three  years'  leave  of  absence.  I  planned,  in  order 
to  save  Herr  Steiner  any  embarrassment,  and  also  to  maintain  our  privi- 
lege in  Bavaria,  since  one  could  not  tell  how  the  Andre  undertaking  might 
turn  out,  to  so  arrange  that  our  work  could  be  printed  properly  during  our 
absence,  whether  done  by  the  Schul-fond,  the  Government,  or  private  per- 
sons. It  gratified  me  also  to  have  an  opportunity  to  satisfy  my  mother's 
wishes  in  regard  to  my  brothers ;  and  I  gave  my  brothers,  Theobald  and 
George,  my  press,  my  stones,  and  everything  else  that  was  on  hand,  also 
the  two  trained  apprentices,  and  only  stipulated  for  myself  that  I  should 
have  one  fourth  of  the  net  profits,  leaving  the  accounting  entirely  to  their 
sense  of  honor.  They  promised  to  keep  accurate  books  and  work  steadily 
and  economically,  and  they  received  from  me  minute  instructions  about 


34  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

transferring  from  the  copper  for  Herr  Steiner.  I  taught  them  also  how 
to  handle  the  crayon  process,  which  promised  an  early  harvest. 

As  soon  as  all  was  done  I  went  to  Offenbach  with  the  whole  Gleissner 
family.  A  good  quantity  of  stones  had  arrived  there,  and  a  few  men,  pre- 
viously trained,  had  been  practicing  in  transcribing  music.  We  were  able 
to  begin  on  a  large  scale  at  once.  Herr  Andre  had  ten  copper-  and  zinc- 
plate  presses  at  work.  He  stopped  five  and  used  the  workmen  for  stone- 
printing.  He  went  to  London,  partly  for  business,  partly  to  get  his  young- 
est brother  and  to  inform  himself  thoroughly  about  the  procedure 
necessary  to  obtain  English  patents. 

One  of  our  chief  speculations  in  England  was  to  be  the  application  of 
stone-printing  to  cotton.  Once,  when  Herr  Steiner  conceived  the  idea  of 
illuminating  pictures  with  stencils  in  the  way  used  by  card-makers,  I  had 
made  many  experiments  in  that  line.  I  cut  out  the  parts  to  be  colored  in 
oil-soaked  paper,  laid  this  on  the  picture,  and  passed  a  roller  over  it  with 
the  desired  color.  The  color  was  more  even  than  with  a  brush,  but  not 
everything  could  be  cut  out,  because  the  stencils  had  to  have  the  necessary 
connection.  Therefore  I  needed  two  stencils  for  every  color  shade.  Again, 
these  thin  stencils  easily  slipped  out  of  place,  a  defect  that  displeased  me. 
Now,  it  happened  that  at  times  when  I  was  a  little  careless,  the  whole 
stencil  would  roll  itself  up  on  the  ink-roller.  I  found  that  it  was  possible  to 
work  even  more  surely  when  this  happened,  provided  one  found  the  exact 
beginning  of  the  stencil  and  applied  it  minutely.  But  it  was  not  possible 
to  make  more  than  twelve  impressions.  Then  the  stencil  had  to  be  taken 
from  the  roller  that  the  latter  might  be  inked  again. 

In  this  work  the  stencil  paper  often  tore.  To  overcome  this  there  was 
only  one  remedy,  which  was  to  make  the  roller  hollow  and  feed  it  with 
color  from  inside.  I  did  not  have  the  time  to  try  this  and  worked  out  an- 
other plan.  I  cut  out  the  places  to  be  colored  in  felt  or  leather,  applied  paste 
to  their  obverse  sides,  laid  them  face  down  on  the  exact  parts  of  the  picture 
which  were  to  be  colored,  rolled  a  perfectly  round  roller  over  them,  and 
the  pieces  adhered  to  the  roller  in  their  right  places.  Then  the  roller  was 
inked  with  the  required  color,  and  of  course  took  it  only  in  the  elevated 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  35 

parts.  At  both  ends  the  roller  had  a  strip  of  leather  of  the  same  thickness 
as  the  cut-outs,  thus  making  it  certain  that  it  would  not  touch  the  ink 
except  in  the  proper  places.  In  tliis  way  pictures  could  be  illuminated  very 
quickly,  and  several  shades  of  color  could  be  obtained  if  the  pieces  were 
of  different  qualities  of  leather,  or  of  leather,  cloth,  and  cotton,  according 
to  the  shades  desired.  A  very  moderate  pressure  sufficed  for  good  and 
even  work. 

What  could  be  more  natural  than  that  I  should  deduce  that  this  sort  of 
printing  might  be  utilized  for  cotton }  Once  inked,  the  roller  was  good  for 
ten  to  twelve  impressions,  if  the  operator  merely  used  a  little  more  pres- 
sure as  he  proceeded.  I  saw  also  that  the  roller  could  easily  be  colored  by 
attaching  another  to  revolve  with  it  and  convey  the  ink.  That  would  give 
us  a  form  of  cotton-printing  that  would  proceed  automatically. 

The  idea  was  too  important  to  be  left  untried.  I  took  a  litde  roller,  two 
inches  in  diameter  and  six  inches  long.  I  glued  a  piece  of  calfskin  com- 
pletely around  it  and  then  cut  a  design  into  it.  Then  this  roller  was  so 
adjusted  with  relation  to  another  of  exactly  the  same  dimensions  that  both 
touched  perfectly.  On  this  second  one,  which  was  to  convey  the  color  to 
the  other,  there  rested  a  little  box  without  a  bottom,  so  that  the  roller 
itself  represented  the  bottom  as  soon  as  the  box  was  pressed  on  it,  which 
was  most  easily  done  with  two  screws.  The  color  was  poured  into  this 
box.  Now  when  the  lower  roller  was  passed  over  linen  or  cotton  which'was 
stretched  on  an  evenly  planed  board  with  an  under  layer  of  cloth,  a  con- 
tinuous print  was  obtained,  without  off-set,  and  with  such  celerity  that 
it  could  be  reckoned  easily  that  with  this  process  several  thousand  yards 
a  day  could  be  produced. 

When  I  invented  the  chemical  printing  afterward,  I  held  that  a  stone 
roller  could  be  used  for  this  work  as  well  as  a  wooden  one.  I  had  too  little 
knowledge  of  the  industry  at  that  time  and  believed  that  cotton  print  was 
done  with  oil-colors ;  for  I  thought  that  water-colors  would  wash  out.  I 
was  a  complete  stranger  to  this  work.  Therefore,  I  drew  a  prettj'  cotton 
pattern  on  a  stone  plate  and  printed  from  it  with  oil  varnish  and  finely  pul- 
verized indigo.  The  impressions  turned  out  very  handsome,  so  that  I  con- 


36  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

sidered  the  matter  settled  and  made  no  further  experiments.  I  imparted 
this  idea  to  Herr  Andre,  who  saw  its  importance  at  once  and  determined 
to  obtain  a  patent  for  it  specially. 

However,  we  had  much  to  learn.  As  soon  as  he  arrived  in  England  he 
discovered  that  rollers  with  the  design  on  them  were  in  general  use  in  Eng- 
land. So  I  had  imagined  mistakenly  that  my  invention  was  new.  However, 
printing  from  stone  was  in  itself  valuable  for  a  patent,  but  Herr  Andre 
unfortunately  received  the  incorrect  information  that  the  inventor  himself 
must  appear  in  England,  and  he  decided  to  send  me  there.  I  did  not  care 
to  go ;  firstly,  because  I  was  vexed  at  the  failure  of  my  hopes  in  regard  to 
cotton-printing;  and  secondly,  because  I  wished  to  go  to  Vienna.  How- 
ever, I  yielded  to  his  representations,  and  within  a  few  weeks  journeyed  to 
London  with  one  of  his  brothers  who  spoke  English. 

We  went  through  Hamburg  to  Cuxhafen  and  thence  in  an  English 
packet-boat  to  Yarmouth,  where  we  landed  after  a  six  days'  stormy  pas- 
sage. 

My  sojourn  in  London  did  not  achieve  its  purpose,  which  was  to  estab- 
lish printing  from  stone.  The  exaggerated  caution  and  precision  of  Hen- 
Philip  Andre,  who  had  been  named  as  the  man  who  was  to  manage  the 
London  negotiations,  caused  a  waste  of  seven  months,  during  which 
nothing  was  done  to  reach  our  object. 

We  lived  with  Herr  Philip  and  he  kept  me  at  home  most  of  the  time, 
for  fear  that  I  might  betray  our  purpose,  in  which  case  some  speculative 
spirit  might  take  out  a  patent  before  us  and  then  compel  us  to  buy  him  off 
for  some  heavy  sum.  He  did  not  reflect  that  a  mere  declaration  is  not  suffi- 
cient in  England,  but  that  an  exact  description  of  a  process  must  be 
deposited  with  the  Patent  Office. 

As  he  could  have  rendered  all  these  fears  unnecessary  by  simply  taking 
out  the  patent,  I  could  not  understand  why  he  delayed  from  month  to 
month,  and  at  last  I  voiced  my  suspicion  that  he  was  not  honest  with  me 
and  had  some  unknown  designs.  I  declared  that  nothing  would  keep  me 
longer  in  England,  which  had  become  wearisome  to  me  owing  to  my  con- 
stant seclusion ;  and  my  suspicions  were  increased  by  the  entire  lack  of  all 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  37 

news  from  the  Glelssners  and  from  my  family.  When  Herr  Philip  Andre 
realized  that  I  could  be  held  back  no  longer,  he  went  to  work  at  last,  and 
in  twelve  daj's  we  had  the  patent  in  our  hands.  As  I  had  trained  Herr 
Philip  already  in  the  art  of  stone-work,  there  was  nothing  to  keep  me 
longer,  and  I  began  my  homeward  voyage  at  once  with  my  former  com- 
panion, Herr  Friedrich  Andre. 

My  seven  months'  sojourn  in  London  had  the  following  results  for 
myself  and  for  lithography :  — 

First,  I  had  decided  in  Offenbach  to  use  my  spare  time  entirely  for  the 
study  of  chemistry.  Particularly  did  I  want  to  learn  everything  that  was 
known  about  color,  that  I  might  use  stone  for  cotton-printing.  I  bought 
the  best  books  and  worked  steadily,  testing  the  teachings  by  experiment. 

Second,  I  made  many  experiments  with  stone-ink,  to  find  the  very  best 
composition.  The  ingredients  which  I  utilized  in  course  of  the  time  were 
about  as  follows :  — 

Soap  — a,  common  tallow  soaps;  b,  Venetian  soap. 

B,  wax. 

C,  tallow,  butter,  and  other  animal  fats. 

D,  spermaceti. 

E,  shellac. 

F,  resins  and  Venetian  turpentine. 

G,  gum  elastic. 
H,  linseed  oil. 

I,  the  fat  contained  in  chocolate. 
L,  various  resinous  products,  such  as  mastic,  copal,  dragon's  blood, 

gum  elemi,  quajac  pensoe,  etc. 
Then  I  used  various  solvents  besides  the  soap,  such  as  — 
M,  vegetable  alkalies,  among  them  tartaric  acid. 
N,  similar  mineral  alkalies. 
O,  animal  lyes,  spirits  of  sal  ammoniac,  and  sal  volatile  with  spirits 

of  ammonia. 
P,  borax. 
Q,  various  metallic  solutions. 


38  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

It  is  evident  that  with  these  substances  an  endless  number  of  experi- 
ments can  be  made,  not  to  count  the  variety  of  proportions.  Certainly  it  is 
not  exaggeration  when  I  say  that  during  that  time  and  later  I  made  many 
thousands  of  experiments,  only  to  confirm  my  experience  that  accidentally 
I  had  discovered  the  best  compositions  during  the  first  twenty  or  thirty 
investigations,  and  that  my  time  after  that  had  been  wasted,  unless  I 
counted  the  knowledge  I  had  gained  of  chemistry. 

Thirdly,  I  made  my  first  attempts  at  that  time  in  the  aqua-tint  style, 
and  also  practiced  printing  with  several  plates,  which  I  had  begun  previ- 
ously under  suggestion  of  Herr  Steiner.  The  son  of  the  Swiss  idyllic  poet, 
Gessner,  was  in  London  at  that  time  and  was  a  good  friend  of  Herr  Philip. 
He  made  some  neat  sketches  for  us  in  the  crayon  process,  which  I  had 
invented  in  Munich  immediately  after  my  invention  of  chemical  printing. 
I  had  exhibited  the  process  to  Professor  Mitterer  at  that  time,  and  he 
thought  that  it  might  become  valuable  for  art. 

Thus  my  residence  in  London  was  not  unimportant  for  lithography. 
The  complete  lack  of  disturbance,  the  adequacy  of  all  needed  material, 
enabled  me  to  discover  more  than  I  might  have  learned  in  Offenbach.  I 
left  England  with  a  certain  satisfaction,  gained  from  the  certainty  that 
I  had  raised  my  art  to  a  high  degree  of  perfection. 

I  am  satisfied  even  to  this  day  that  the  world  would  have  many  master- 
pieces as  the  result,  had  I  come  into  contact  at  that  time  with  an  enter- 
prising art  publisher  who  would  have  engaged  the  needed  artists  and 
undertaken  interesting  works.  As  it  was,  however,  and  as  I  shall  show, 
circumstances  forced  me  into  untoward  positions,  so  that  little  or  no 
opportunity  was  left  me  to  use  my  knowledge  practically  and  in  an 
important  way. 

Immediately  on  my  arrival  in  Offenbach,  I  received  the  displeasing 
news  that  Herr  Andre  had  sent  Madame  Gleissner  to  Vienna  to  claim  the 
exclusive  franchise  for  the  new  printing  process,  and  to  enter  lawsuit 
against  my  mother,  who  had  gone  to  Vienna  with  the  same  purpose. 

The  reason  for  this  was  as  follows :  My  two  brothers,  Theobald  and 
George,  who  could  not  earn  enough  in  Munich,  had  been  engaged  as  litho- 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  39 

graphers  by  Herr  Andre  in  Offenbach  on  my  request.  In  a  confidential 
mood  I  told  them  that  I  hoped  to  go  to  Vienna  and  open  a  great  printing 
estabhshment  and  art  pubhcation  house  with  assistance  of  Herr  Andre, 
and  that  this  establishment  should  make  my  fortune  as  well  as  that  of  my 
family. 

Probably  they  did  not  believe  my  promise,  or  they  did  not  care  to  de- 
pend on  my  fraternal  feeling  for  something  which  they  believed  they  could 
get  for  themselves :  enough,  they  wrote  to  my  mother  that  it  was  unfair  to 
let  Herr  Andre  become  exclusive  proprietor  of  the  new  process  everywhere, 
and  as  I  was  well  established  in  London  anyway,  she  would  better  travel 
to  Vienna  and  ask  for  a  franchise.  They  sent  her  several  good  proofs  from 
the  Andre  press. 

Would  to  Heaven  this  plan  of  theirs  had  succeeded !  I  should  have  been 
spared  many  a  succeeding  sorrow,  and  I  would  have  been  glad  for  their 
sakes.  The  world  was  large  enough  for  me,  and  certainly  it  was  not  thor- 
oughly fair  that  they,  the  nearest  relatives  of  the  inventor,  should  be  shut 
out  by  the  far-reaching  plans  of  Herr  Andre  to  obtain  exclusive  franchises 
everywhere.  To  be  sure,  I  had  told  them  that  I  would  give  them  the 
Bavarian  franchise ;  but  as  they  had  enjoyed  it  for  several  months  with 
little  profit,  this  did  not  seem  to  them  a  tempting  equivalent. 

The  news  of  my  mother's  journey  to  Vienna  had  been  brought  to 
Madame  Gleissner  quite  accidentally,  and  it  made  her  almost  frantic. 

When  she  used  to  charge  me  with  depending  so  completely  on  Hen- 
Andre's  promises,  without  possessing  anything  in  writing,  I  used  to  com- 
fort her  by  pointing  out  his  righteous  character,  and  also  by  reminding 
her  that  it  was  all  agreed  that  I  and  Herr  Gleissner  should  undertake  the 
printery  in  Vienna  as  part  of  the  general  enterprise,  and  that  we  were  to 
obtain  the  necessary  advance  funds  as  soon  as  I  returned  from  England. 
The  repeated  complaints  that  she  made,  many  of  them  in  the  presence  of 
my  brothers,  possibly  helped  to  give  them  the  idea  of  trying  themselves  for 
a  franchise  in  Austria.  They  may  have  thought, "  If  our  brother  is  careless 
enough  to  depend  on  empty  words,  we  will  be  wise  enough  to  obtain  a 
certainty.  It  remains  open  to  us  always  to  share  our  fortune  with  the 
inventor." 


40  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Madame  Gleissner  had  entertained  great  hopes  about  living  in  splendid 
Vienna  and  having  means  enough  to  take  part  in  its  brilliant  hfe.  This 
made  the  news  about  my  mother's  errand  all  the  more  irritating.  She  did 
not  consider  that  an  Imperial  franchise  is  not  easily  obtained  by  women 
who  are  not  even  well  informed  on  the  case  at  issue.  She  succeeded  in 
imparting  her  fears  to  Herr  Andre,  and  as  he  himself  was  prevented  from 
going,  he  entered  into  her  fool's  counsel  to  send  her  to  Vienna  at  once. 
She  had  strong  hopes  of  success,  because  as  a  matter  of  fact  the  Bavarian 
franchise  had  been  obtained  entirely  through  her  efforts,  and  she  also 
calculated  that  the  Austrian  Government  would  pay  more  heed  to  the 
inventor  himself  than  to  his  brothers,  who  could  not  equal  his  attainments. 

Herr  Andre  had  kept  it  all,  even  to  the  journey  of  Madame  Gleissner,  a 
secret  from  me,  presumably  because  he  wanted  to  save  me  annoyance  and 
also  to  prevent  my  hasty  return  from  England. 

Unfortunately  I  had  conceived  some  suspicions  in  England,  and  these 
were  increased  when  I  received  this  unexpected  news  on  my  arrival  in 
Offenbach.  What  was  worse,  Herr  Gleissner  gave  me  a  letter  from  his 
wife,  in  which  she  adjured  me  to  hurry  to  Vienna  with  all  speed,  as  Andre 
was  planning  to  deceive  me  and  set  me  aside  as  a  mere  tool  as  soon  as 
I  had  founded  his  own  fortune. 

This  letter,  which  contained  no  evidence  but  only  lamentations,  was 
accompanied  by  another  from  her  landlord  in  Vienna,  a  very  reputable 
merchant.  It  seemed  to  bear  her  out,  for  he  warned  me  in  it  to  be  cautious 
in  my  relations  with  Andre  and  to  hurry  to  Vienna  if  I  wished  to  obtain 
the  franchise,  which  could  not  escape  me  as  a  most  influential  man  had 
come  to  our  support  and  it  depended  merely  on  the  evidence  to  be  fur- 
nished by  me. 

Greatly  as  my  suspicions  were  increased  by  this,  I  hoped  that  every- 
thing was  due  merely  to  misunderstanding,  and  I  proposed  to  Herr  Andre 
to  let  me  go  to  Vienna,  where  I  would  inform  myself  thoroughly  and  make 
strong  efforts  to  obtain  the  franchise.  He  denied  my  request,  saying  that 
there  was  nothing  more  to  do  in  Vienna,  as  the  Government  had  turned 
both  women  away,  and  the  whole  plan  was  spoiled  as  the  whole  art  and 


FROM  1796  TO  1800  41 

copper-etching  trade  had  become  apprehensive  and  was  united  in  opposi- 
tion to  the  new  process.  He  said  that  I  should  rather  go  quickly  to  work  to 
transfer  his  music  from  zinc  plates  to  the  stone,  because  he  had  an  excel- 
lent opportunity  to  sell  his  entire  stock  of  zincs,  which  would  give  us  a  new 
capital  of  forty  thousand  gulden  for  the  greater  enterprises. 

I  realized  the  good  sense  of  this,  but  would  not  admit  that  a  delay  of 
three  or  four  weeks  could  interfere  with  it,  as  the  entire  transfers  could  not 
be  completed  in  less  than  a  year,  and  the  slight  delay,  therefore,  could  be 
made  up  by  additional  work  or  by  engaging  a  few  more  assistants.  I  in- 
sisted on  my  demand,  all  the  more  as  I  had  spent  seven  months  in  England 
on  his  account.  In  the  heat  of  the  succeeding  dispute  he  reminded  me  of 
the  helpless  position  in  which  he  had  found  me,  and  said  that  as  partner  in 
his  business,  I  owed  him  all  my  present  fortune.  Conscious  as  I  was  of  my 
honest  intention  to  help  him  to  the  best  of  my  ability,  and  also  of  the 
unbounded  trustfulness  with  which  I  had  imparted  to  him  far  more  than 
was  called  for  in  our  contract,  I  was  so  deeply  hurt  that  I  forgot  myself 
and  tore  up  our  agreement,  which  had  been  signed  only  the  day  before 
and  which  assured  for  me  one  fifth  of  all  profits  of  the  Andre  business.  I 
threw  the  pieces  down  with  the  exclamation  that  I  did  not  wish  to  make 
my  fortune  through  his  means. 

This  was  one  of  the  most  important  moments  in  my  life,  and  in  the  pro- 
cess of  lithography.  It  gave  my  work  an  entirely  new  direction,  hurled  me 
into  a  mass  of  troubles,  and  brought  it  about  that  Herr  Andre  himself  did 
not  gain  anything  like  the  expected  profits  from  the  new  art.  Indeed,  he 
lost  heavily  in  London  and  France,  whereas,  had  we  remained  together, 
lithography  might  now  be  highly  perfected  in  both  these  countries  and 
produce  no  small  wealth  for  its  users. 

When  Andre  saw  that  I  was  determined  to  go  to  Vienna,  he  yielded,  but 
assured  me  that  I  would  go  in  vain  and  achieve  no  result. 

The  lawsuit  between  Madame  Gleissner  and  my  mother,  which  Herr 
Andre  considered  the  greatest  obstacle  in  his  way,  still  continued ;  and  in 
order  to  get  it  out  of  the  way  once  and  for  all,  I  took  my  brothers,  George 
and  Theobald,  who  had  been  dismissed  by  Herr  Andre,  to  Vienna  with  me 


42  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

to  combine  with  me.  Andre  told  me  afterward,  after  our  relations  had 
reached  final  rupture,  that  this  act  had  annoyed  him  most,  and  that  it  was 
the  main  reason  for  giving  up  all  dealings  with  me,  because  it  was  incon- 
ceivable to  him  how  any  one,  without  the  utmost  weakness  of  character, 
could  forgive  such  treachery  as  theirs.  He  did  not  reflect  that  I,  who  knew 
selfishness  only  by  name,  had  not  felt  their  affront  so  keenly,  and  that  my 
brotherly  affection  excused  it  and  made  me  trust  that  it  never  had  been 
their  intention  to  shut  me  out  entirely  from  any  gains  they  might  make. 


PART  II 

FROM   1800  TO   1806 

IT  was  in  August,  1800,  that  I  went  to  Vienna  with  my  brothers.  In 
Regensburg  we  met  my  mother,  who  had  come  to  visit  one  of  her 
daughters  because  the  decision  of  the  Imperial  Austrian  Government  had 
been  delayed  too  long  for  her  patience.  She  assured  me  that  when  she 
petitioned  for  the  privilege  she  had  named  not  only  my  brothers  but  me, 
too,  and  had  asked  it  for  us  three. 

This  assurance  gave  me  great  joy,  and  I  determined  absolutely  to  urge 
Madame  Gleissner  to  accept  my  brothers  as  partners.  I  thought  that  if 
we  three  worked  industriously  and  unitedly,  we  would  succeed  much 
better  and  more  quickly.  I  entered  Vienna  with  excellent  hopes,  based 
mostly  on  a  letter  from  Madame  Gleissner,  saying  that  the  influential  man 
who  was  interested  in  our  cause  had  promised  to  advance  us  six  thousand 
gulden.  But  these  fine  things  retired  into  dark  shadows  when  I  learned, 
in  my  first  conversation  with  her,  that  all  these  promises  were  made 
dependent  on  conditions. 

The  whole  understanding  rested  on  the  following :  Madame  Gleissner 
lodged  with  a  prominent  family.  Andre  himself  had  told  her  that  she  was 
to  live  well  and  exhibit  no  lack  of  money,  because  she  was  much  more 
likely  to  obtain  the  franchise  if  the  Government  were  led  to  expect  that  it 
would  bring  wealthy  people  into  the  country.  Therefore  Madame  Gleiss- 
ner considered  it  necessary  to  take  part  in  all  amusements  and  fashions  of 
her  hosts.  Her  monthly  expenditures  were  beyond  the  sum  considered 
necessary  by  Herr  Andre's  friend  in  Vienna,  who  had  been  authorized  to 
pay  her  an  allowance.  Friendly  solicitude  caused  him  to  write  to  Ofl^en- 
bach  that  Madame  Gleissner  knew  nothing  of  economy,  and  diat  it  was  to 
be  feared  if  the  franchise  were  not  granted  in  Herr  Andre's  name,  he  would 


44  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

have  too  little  power  to  check  her  extravagance  in  the  future.  He  added 
that  judging  from  her  utterances  and  her  present  behavior,  with  the 
franchise  still  in  question,  it  was  only  too  likely  that  she  intended  to 
spend  Herr  Andre's  money  for  show  and  society  instead  of  for  the 
business. 

Therefore,  he  advised  that,  unless  Andre  was  sure  that  Senefelder  had 
enough  character  to  oppose  her  with  the  necessary  firmness,  we  be  treated 
solely  as  subordinates  and  thus  be  prevented  from  using  his  credit  to  his 
loss. 

Well  meant  as  this  counsel  was,  it  simply  furnishes  an  addition  to  the 
thousands  of  cases  where  exaggerated  timidity,  coupled  with  secrecy,  does 
more  harm  than  good. 

Andre  knew  my  intense  gratitude  to  Herr  Gleissner  and  his  family,  and 
he  suspected  that  I  would  always  live  in  a  certain  dependence  on  them  and 
would  pay  little  attention  to  their  financial  doings.  The  Gleissners  had 
awakened  a  fear  of  their  extravagance  in  him  before  this  time.  He  knew, 
for  instance,  that  I  had  kept  little  of  the  money  he  had  paid  me  for  the 
secret  of  our  process,  but  had  turned  almost  all  over  to  them.  Again,  he 
had  granted  us  the  sum  of  one  thousand  six  hundred  gulden  for  our  sup- 
port in  Offenbach  until  the  business  should  be  in  operation.  Of  this  Herr 
Gleissner  was  to  draw  six  hundred  gulden  and  I  one  thousand  gulden. 
I  was  a  bachelor  and  did  not  need  so  much  as  a  family.  Therefore  I 
reversed  this,  and  gave  Herr  Gleissner  one  thousand  gulden,  keeping  six 
hundred  for  myself  But  the  latter  also  went  into  the  Gleissner  treasury, 
because  Herr  Andre,  who  had  come  to  like  me  very  much,  made  me  live  in 
his  house  and  eat  with  him.  He  even  kept  a  horse  for  me,  that  I  might 
have  the  exercise  necessary  for  my  health,  and  if  he  bought  himself  a  new 
article  of  dress  I  was  sure  to  get  one  like  it ;  and  I  had  to  take  part  in  all 
the  amusements  of  his  home,  though  many  times  I  would  rather  have 
worked. 

Thus  I  had  absolutely  no  needs  and  did  not  require  money.  All  the 
more  did  Madame  Gleissner  require.  She  strained  everything  to  be  very 
elegant  and  could  not  get  along  with  the  money  she  received,  but  asked  for 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  45 

further,  quite  considerable  advances  while  I  was  in  London,  and  Hen- 
Andre  granted  these  willingly  dirough  friendship  for  me. 

Therefore  Andre's  suspicions  seemed  well  founded ;  and  as  in  his  heart 
he  was  firmly  determined  to  treat  me  as  a  brother,  he  believed  that  a  mere 
outward  formality  and  my  hitherto  quite  unknown  name  would  make  no 
real  difference,  but  rather  that  the  Vienna  undertaking  would  benefit  if 
it  had  his  own  well-known  name  and  excellent  credit  at  its  head  in  the  very 
beginning. 

So  he  wrote  to  his  friend  in  Vienna  that  he  agreed  with  him,  and  he  gave 
authority  to  him  to  act  as  he  thought  best  for  the  mutual  good. 

This  gentleman  told  Madame  Gleissner  at  once  that  Herr  Andre  had 
decided  to  ask  for  the  franchise  in  his  own  name  to  give  value  to  the 
undertaking,  and  that  she  was  to  appear  before  court  and  declare  that  she 
withdrew  her  petition  and  turned  it  over  to  him.  She  suspected  a  trick  and 
refused.  A  dispute  followed,  and  there  came  rebukes  for  her  heavy  expen- 
ditures. The  climax  was  reached  with  the  threat  that,  if  she  insisted  on 
her  refusal,  Herr  Andre  would  cease  from  that  moment  to  let  her  have  any 
money  and  would  let  her  support  herself. 

This  last,  which  Madame  Gleissner  wrote  me  in  a  very  bitter  letter, 
outraged  me ;  for  I  held  it  cruel  to  send  a  woman  to  a  strange  city  where 
she  had  no  relatives  or  friends,  and  then  to  tell  her:  "Now  do  my  will,  or 
I  will  leave  it  to  bitter  necessity  and  your  own  helplessness  to  tame  you." 
To  be  sure,  it  was  only  a  threat,  and  surely  it  never  lay  in  Herr  Andre's 
mind.  His  friend  never  ceased  to  give  her  money.  But  the  harm  had  been 
done. 

Madame  Gleissner  appeared  at  her  host's  table  with  signs  of  tears  that 
aroused  the  sympathy  of  her  host,  Herr  von  Bogner,  a  most  worthy  and 
reputable  merchant.  She  told  him  everything,  complained  bitterly  about 
my  gullibility,  and  generally  painted  everything  in  such  colors  that  Herr 
Bogner  could  not  well  help  thinking  that  Herr  Andre  did  not  consider 
promises  any  too  sincerely.  It  was  only  then  tliat  he  learned  Madame 
Gleissner's  business  and  was  told  that  the  new  art  promised  a  great  profit. 

Herr  Andre's  far-reaching  plans  for  foreign  exploitation  seemed  to  him 


46  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

to  confirm  what  she  said.  Herr  Bogner  thought  that  Herr  Andre  would 
not  invest  so  much  money  if  stone-print  were  not  a  valuable  invention,  and 
he  asked  Madame  Gleissner,  point-blank :  "Why  do  you  need  Herr  Andre 
at  all  ?  Try  to  obtain  the  Austrian  franchise  for  yourself,  and  then,  if  you 
choose,  you  can  take  him  into  the  company.  Then  he  will  be  obligated  to 
you  and  will  have  to  meet  your  wishes,  whereas  now  the  reverse  is  the 


case." 


Madame  Gleissner  interposed  that  Herr  Andre  had  the  capital  neces- 
sary for  establishing  the  process  on  a  large  scale,  to  which  Herr  Bogner 
responded  that  it  was  better  to  begin  modestly.  "A  good  thing,"  said  he, 
"grows  of  itself.  And  you  must  not  imagine  that  we  here  in  Austria  have 
no  appreciation  of  useful  inventions  and  undertakings.  There  are  many 
who  will  assist  the  arts  and  industries.  There  is  even  a  special  fund  from 
which  as  much  as  one  thousand  gulden  may  be  advanced  to  develop  an 
invention  that  has  proved  itself  to  be  of  merit.  I  myself  might  not  be 
disinclined  to  become  a  partner  after  I  have  examined  the  matter  properly ; 
also  I  can  recommend  a  very  enterprising,  active  man,  who  has  much 
weight  with  the  Ministers  and  even  with  His  Majesty  the  Emperor,  and 
who  has  obtained  exclusive  franchises  for  others.  He  is  named  von  Hartl, 
is  Imperial  Court  Agent,  and  is  a  very  sensible  and  honorable  man,  who 
will  surely  tell  you  at  once  whether  or  not  anything  can  be  done  here  with 
the  process." 

Herr  von  Bogner  kept  his  promise,  and  introduced  Madame  Gleissner 
the  very  next  day  to  Herr  von  Hartl.  She  explained  our  relations  with 
Andre  and  described  the  new  invention,  wherein,  to  be  sure,  she  did  not 
fail  to  boast  of  its  advantages  and  beauties.  Among  other  specimens  she 
produced  a  piece  of  cotton  which  I  had  printed  in  Offenbach. 

This  was  very  pretty,  the  print  being  so  sharp  and  clear  that  it  seemed 
to  exceed  the  best  English  work.  It  happened  that  just  then  a  great  com- 
pany with  a  capital  of  one  and  one  half  million  gulden  had  been  formed  by 
Herr  von  Hartl  to  introduce  English  machine-spinning  in  Austria.  They 
had  secured  a  very  skillful  English  mechanic  named  Thornton,  who  had 
been  under  contract  to  erect  similar  machines  for  a  Hamburg  merchant. 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  47 

They  had  paid  a  great  sum  to  have  him  released  from  this  contract,  had 
bought  his  machines,  and  had  done  enough  sample  work  so  that  it  had 
been  resolved  to  push  the  enterprise  through  even  if  several  more  millions 
were  needed.  The  chief  objection  that  was  urged  at  that  time  was  that  an 
adequate  sale  of  the  products  was  doubtful  because  of  the  widespread 
business  that  the  English  controlled.  The  reply  was  that  they  must  seek  to 
work  up  a  great  part  of  their  product  themselves,  —  that  is,  combine  with 
their  spinnery  the  industries  of  weaving,  dyeing,  and  cotton-printing. 

As  soon  as  Herr  von  Hartl  heard  that  the  new  invention  promised  great 
advantages  for  cotton-printing,  he  pledged  himself  to  lay  the  matter  before 
His  Majesty  at  once,  and  he  promised  that  if  I  would  come  to  Vienna  and 
produce  the  necessary  proofs  he  would  surely  get  the  exclusive  franchise 
for  me.  Furthermore,  when  Madame  Gleissner  told  him,  in  reply  to  a 
question,  that  we  would  need  about  six  thousand  gulden  in  the  beginning, 
he  announced  his  readiness  to  furnish  that  sum  himself  if  I  could  convince 
him  that  a  real  benefit  was  to  be  produced  by  the  new  art. 

Madame  Gleissner  wrote  to  me,  but  withheld  the  condition  of  Herr  von 
Hartl  that  I  must  convince  him.  I  would  have  taken  care  not  to  give  such 
greedy  heed  to  her,  for  I  knew  from  experience  how  difficult  it  is  to  con- 
vince most  people.  But,  I  was  determined  to  show  my  friend  Andre  that  I 
and  my  art  were  by  no  means  at  a  loss  without  him.  Besides,  I  always  had 
the  royal  Bavarian  franchise  to  fall  back  on.  His  secrecy  had  shaken  my 
confidence,  and  I  was  determined  to  find  out  everything  for  myself. 

Many  years  later,  when  I  reviewed  everything  calmly,  I  was  sufficiently 
convinced  that  Herr  Andre  always  had  meant  honestly  by  me ;  and  I  count 
myself  fortunate  to  have  him  still  as  my  friend.  But  at  that  time  various 
misunderstandings  brought  it  about  that  he  did  not  give  me  full  knowledge 
of  everything,  before  he  took  steps  contrary  to  our  agreement  and  without 
my  cognizance  that  could  not  fail  to  impress  me  as  strange,  since  I  was 
ignorant  of  the  circumstances.  Besides,  he  defended  himself  against  my 
accusations  in  a  manner  that  affronted  my  vanity  deeply,  for  he  gave  me  to 
understand  plainly  that  my  past  weakness  in  the  matter  of  the  Gleissners' 
extravagance  proved  that  I  should  always  have  to  dance  to  their  tune.  It 


48  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

angered  me  that  he  should  turn  against  me,  as  weakness,  my  recognition 
of  the  patient  faithfulness  of  the  Gleissners  through  the  many  sorrows  that 
had  overwhelmed  us  since  the  beginning  of  the  process ;  and  the  more  so 
as  I  was  giving  them  merely  that  which  I  did  not  require  and  which  was 
my  own  undisputed  property.  According  to  that,  I  would  have  earned  the 
reputation  of  being  a  firm,  strong  man  had  I  used  my  superfluous  earnings 
to  buy  a  few  watches,  a  ring,  or  some  garments,  rather  than  to  use  it  to  pay 
a  debt  of  gratitude !  Besides,  whatever  Herr  Andre  had  advanced  to  them 
was  something  that  had  been  done  without  my  knowledge ;  therefore  I 
accounted  all  his  charges  as  being  only  empty  words,  used  to  cover  a 
proposed  piece  of  trickery. 

After  my  first  conversation  with  Madame  Gleissner,  but  more  especially 
with  Herr  Andre's  representative  in  Vienna,  I  realized  that  the  latter  could 
not  be  censured  for  his  measures  of  prudence,  and  I  repented  that  I  had 
so  easily  given  way  to  my  quick  sensitiveness.  The  franchise  evidently  was 
very  uncertain.  The  only  hope  for  it  lay  in  the  assistance  of  Herr  von 
Hartl,  and,  therefore,  depended  on  my  ability  to  convince  him.  I  had 
spent  my  money  traveling,  and  instead  of  finding  Madame  Gleissner  in 
funds,  as  I  had  assumed  from  her  letter,  I  found  her  ill  with  only  a  few 
guldens,  and  in  addition  I  had  two  brothers  on  my  hands  who  also  were 
penniless  and  looked  to  me  for  their  support. 

Madame  Gleissner  assured  me  that  Herr  von  Hartl  would  assist  us  and 
that  I  could  reckon  also  on  help  from  her  host,  who  had  counseled  her  to 
part  from  Herr  Andre  and  seek  the  privilege  for  herself.  I  mustered  up 
sufficient  courage  to  explain  our  situation  to  the  latter  gentleman  and  to 
ask  him  if  we  could  count  on  his  help  for  the  beginning.  This  request 
must  have  been  unexpected  by  Herr  von  Bogner,  as  Madame  Gleissner's 
manner  of  living  had  indicated  anything  rather  than  lack  of  wealth.  How- 
ever, he  liked  my  frankness,  and  promised  active  aid.  He  gave  me  a 
handsome  room,  and  I  and  Madame  Gleissner  ate  at  his  own  table.  He 
paid,  also,  for  the  lodging  of  my  brothers  in  another  house. 

Two  days  after  our  arrival,  I  and  my  brothers  visited  Herr  von  Hartl  in 
his  country  residence  in  Dornbach.  We  were  received  most  kindly,  and  he 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  49 

promised  me  his  aid  if  I  could  give  satisfactory  proofs.  So  far  as  the  fran- 
chise was  concerned,  however,  he  showed  me  that  it  could  be  taken  out 
only  in  my  name,  and  this,  he  explained,  would  be  difficult  enough,  as  all 
the  art  dealers  were  against  it.  To  ask  for  it  in  the  name  of  three  brothers 
was  out  of  the  question.  Neither,  said  he,  would  it  be  necessary,  as  I  could 
make  a  separate  contract  with  them  through  which  they  could  be  partners 
with  me. 

Herr  von  Hartl,  who,  as  Court  Agent,  naturally  knew  all  that  was  to  be 
done,  would  not  have  said  this  without  good  reason.  My  brothers,  how- 
ever, were  highly  incensed,  and  declared  that  they  would  not  be  dependent 
on  me,  but  would  be  their  own  masters.  Had  they  possessed  the  money 
necessary  to  travel  they  would,  no  doubt,  have  carried  out  this  resolve 
at  once,  for  they  had  been  angered  already  by  the  fact  that  Herr  von 
Bogner  kept  only  me  as  his  guest.  My  representations  were  without  effect. 
They  told  me  that  they  would  return  to  Munich  and  practice  the  Bavarian 
privilege  in  my  name  if  Herr  von  Hartl  would  give  them  the  journey 
money;  otherwise  they  would  be  forced  to  listen  to  the  proposition  of  sev- 
eral Viennese  art  dealers  and  sell  them  the  secret  of  the  stone-printing 
art. 

As  this  would  have  destroyed  all  chance  for  getting  an  exclusive  privi- 
lege, Herr  von  Hartl  gave  them  the  money,  and  Theobald  and  George 
Senefelder  returned  to  Munich,  after  making  a  contract  with  me  which 
permitted  them  to  establish  a  printing  business  and,  if  possible,  an  art 
business,  my  share  in  which  was  to  be  one  third  of  the  net  profit  after 
deducting  the  cost  of  their  own  support.  This  contract  was  necessary  to 
authorize  them  to  practice  under  my  privilege. 

Meantime  I  had  a  small  hand-press  made  and  produced  several  pieces 
of  work  for  Herr  von  Hartl,  which  gave  him  a  clearer  idea  of  the  new  art, 
and  convinced  him  finally  that  it  was  worth  while  to  risk  something  on  it. 
He  made  a  full  contract  with  me,  in  which  he  bound  himself  to  furnish 
money  and  everything  necessary,  and  use  all  his  influence  to  further  the 
business,  while  I  was  to  give  all  my  time  and  knowledge.  The  profits  were 
to  be  divided  into  two  equal  parts,  one  of  which  was  to  be  his,  while  the 


so  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

other  was  to  be  divided  between  myself  and  Herr  Gleissner.  He  allotted 
a  proper  sum  for  my  support,  told  me  to  rent  a  comfortable  residence,  and 
authorized  me  to  buy  some  large  presses.  He  told  me  frankly  that  the  use 
of  stone  for  cotton-printing  had  the  most  interest  for  him,  and  that  he 
cared  about  the  other  forms  of  printing  only  as  paying  for  our  expenditures. 
When  the  big  spinning-shops  were  ready,  said  he,  he  would  give  me  so 
great  an  opportunity  that  I  could  let  Herr  Gleissner  have  all  the  art-  and 
music-printing  to  himself. 

What  glorious  prospects  opened  themselves  to  me !  What  could  I  think 
except  that  it  would  require  merely  industry  to  become  a  famous,  happy 
man  in  a  short  period  ? 

Here  I  must  interpolate  the  account  of  a  happening  that  brought  about 
a  total  rupture  with  Andre.  Until  now  our  relations  had  not  been  wholly 
severed.  His  last  word  was  that  I  would,  no  doubt,  go  to  Vienna  in  vain, 
and  in  that  case  I  should  return  to  him,  as  he  would  receive  me  with  open 
arms.  When  I  saw  his  correspondent  in  Vienna  and  learned  from  him 
that  he  had  orders  to  let  me  have  money  if  I  wanted  it ;  when  I  perceived 
further  that  Madame  Gleissner  had  been  too  hasty,  and  that  all  the  tangle 
was  caused  by  misunderstandings,  I  dismissed  all  anger  and  wrote  to  my 
friend  Andre  at  once,  telling  him  that  I  had  found  things  not  nearly  so  bad 
in  Vienna  as  he  imagined.  It  was  true,  I  said,  that  the  two  women  had 
failed  to  obtain  the  franchise,  but  mostly  because  they  could  give  no  dem- 
onstrations. It  was  quite  different,  now  that  the  inventor  himself  was 
petitioning  for  it,  especially  as  Herr  von  Hartl  had  promised  absolutely 
to  take  our  part.  If,  therefore,  Andre  were  willing  to  spend  at  most  one 
thousand  gulden  for  a  press  and  to  pay  for  our  support  and  necessary 
working  expenses  for  sbj  months,  there  would  be  absolutely  no  doubt  of 
fortunate  outcome. 

Had  I  had  the  happy  thought  to  ask  Herr  von  Hartl  to  add  a  few  lines, 
my  letter  might  have  had  the  intended  result.  But  I  considered  my  word 
sufficient,  and  unluckily  my  letter  reached  Offenbach  when  Andre  was 
absent,  and  was  answered  by  his  brother  in  about  the  following  fashion : 

His  brother,  he  said,  was  absent ;  but  as  he  knew  his  opinion  exactly,  he 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  51 

would  not  keep  me  waiting.  I  must  not  be  offended,  but  he  believed  that 
my  ready  trustfulness,  caused  by  my  good-heartedness,  had  played  me 
a  prank  again.  He  was  completely  convinced  from  the  advices  of  their 
Vienna  friends  that  the  privilege  would  be  granted  only  if  his  brother 
removed  bag  and  baggage  to  Vienna  and  had  himself  naturalized  there, 
something  which  his  affairs  did  not  permit.  I  would  discover,  soon  enough, 
that  the  lovely  promises  made  me  were  nothing  but  air. 

Then  he  went  on  to  say  that  even  if  the  sum  of  one  thousand  gulden 
really  were  only  a  trifle,  it  would  not  produce  the  desired  result.  Madame 
Gleissner,  said  he,  had  incurred  debts  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  gulden 
since  she  had  broken  with  his  brother,  and  as  she  had  used  this  sum  not 
for  his  good  but  rather  for  his  harm,  it  was  only  fair  that  she  pay  it  herself. 
I,  probably,  would  be  in  debt  nearly  one  hundred  gulden,  now  that  I  had 
been  in  Vienna  some  weeks  with  my  brothers.  If  I  wanted  to  build  a  press 
in  Vienna  where  wood  is  dear,  it  would  cost  easily  one  hundred  and  fifty 
gulden.  Then  there  would  be  one  hundred  gulden  for  stones,  etc.  I  would 
need  a  dwelling,  for  which  I  would  have  to  pay  at  least  one  hundred  gul- 
den in  advance.  This  would  leave  only  four  hundred  gulden.  The  winter 
was  at  hand,  neither  my  brothers  nor  Madame  Gleissner  had  the  necessary 
clothing,  everything  would  be  needed.  In  brief,  he  assured  me,  before 
many  weeks  the  one  thousand  gulden  would  be  spent  and  in  the  end  there 
would  be  no  press,  no  stones,  and  no  specimen  work. 

Therefore,  he  concluded,  I  should  not  feel  affronted  if  he  told  me  his 
heartfelt  thoughts.  The  aspect  of  the  Vienna  matter  would,  probably,  be 
different  if  my  over-great  good-heartedness  did  not  put  fetters  upon  me 
that  must  prevent  anybody  from  placing  full  confidence  in  my  advice.  I 
would  better,  therefore,  dismiss  the  plans,  and  be  sure  that  nobody  meant 
it  more  sincerely  with  me  than,  etc. 

It  may  be  supposed  that  this  letter  gave  me  little  pleasure ;  and  I  made 
up  my  mind  to  show  Herr  Andre  that  he  had  made  a  mistake  and  had 
thrown  away  a  great  profit  idly.  I  made  the  contract  with  Herr  von  Hartl, 
and  we  went  to  work  actively  at  once.  I  had  a  large  lever  press  built  and 
asked  the  Austrian  Government  to  appoint  a  commission  to  examine  the 


52  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

process.  This  was  done,  and  besides  the  Mayor,  there  appeared  the  fac- 
tory inspector,  Herr  von  Jaquin,  who  was  a  Professor  of  Chemistry,  and 
the  director  of  the  academy  of  copper-plate  engravers,  Herr  Schmutzer.  I 
showed  them  the  various  methods  of  printing  from  stone  on  paper,  cotton, 
and  calico,  and  explained  the  difference  of  my  process  from  all  others.  My 
demonstrations  were  applauded, and  the  commission  certified  most  heart- 
ily in  favor  of  my  petition  for  the  exclusive  privilege. 

In  addition,  Herr  von  Hard  went  with  me  to  a  meeting  of  the  Imperial 
Councilors,  then  to  the  Imperial  Counsel  of  State,  von  Gruber,  to  Count 
Lazansky,  and,  finally,  to  His  Majesty,  the  Emperor  himself.  Everywhere 
I  had  to  make  demonstrations  with  my  litde  hand-press,  at  which  time 
Herr  von  Hartl,  to  my  great  joy,  always  acted  as  cicerone  and  eagerly 
described  the  manifold  advantage  which  the  new  art  had  for  so  many 
branches  of  the  arts  and  sciences. 

Everywhere  we  received  praise  and  were  promised  the  speedy  issuance 
of  the  privilege.  As,  however,  the  matter  had  to  take  a  regular  course,  and 
it  was  evident  that  some  time  must  elapse,  we  petitioned  meantime  for  a 
mere  license  to  work,  which  we  received  within  a  few  weeks,  so  that  I  was 
able  to  begin  printing  without  further  delay. 

Herr  von  Hartl  became  more  friendly  each  day,  and  opened  for  me  the 
most  beautiful  outlook  on  the  future.  My  easily  moved  imagination  inter- 
preted his  speeches  as  brightly  as  possible,  and  I  imagined  that  I  saw 
fortune  and  position  close  at  hand.  I  worked  all  the  harder,  therefore,  to 
fulfill  his  expectations ;  and  as  his  chief  object  was  printing  on  cotton  I 
threw  myself  zealously  into  the  study  of  color,  as  absolute  permanence  was 
needed  besides  beauty  of  printing. 

During  this  time  Herr  Gleissner  had  left  Offenbach  and  had  returned  to 
Munich  with  his  children.  As  I  was  in  partnership  with  him,  and  he  could 
make  himself  useful  in  the  printing  of  music,  Herr  von  Hartl  decided  to 
have  him  come  to  Vienna,  and  his  wife  took  it  on  herself  to  get  him  and 
arrange  for  an  extension  of  his  leave  of  absence.  She  found  him  in  the  sad- 
dest of  circumstances.  In  his  ignorance  of  such  things,  he  had  sold  all  the 
furniture  in  Offenbach  for  a  mere  joke  of  a  sum.  Most  of  this  money  had 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  53 

been  used  to  defray  his  traveling  expenses,  and  she  found  the  family 
stripped  of  even  necessaries.  What  was  to  be  done  ?  Her  husband  and 
children  needed  clothing  that  they  might  not  make  a  bad  impression  in 
Vienna,  her  husband's  debts  had  to  be  paid,  and  then  came  the  traveling 
expenses.  The  money  advanced  by  Herr  von  Hard  was  not  nearly  enough 
for  all  this.  She  wrote  to  me  to  ask  him  for  an  additional  sum  of  three  or 
four  hundred  gulden. 

This  was  exceedingly  unpleasant  for  me.  I  should  have  to  tell  him  the 
truth,  and  thus  place  Herr  Gleissner  in  a  bad  light  right  in  the  beginning. 
Furthermore,  he  had  received  no  too  favorable  a  report  about  the  domestic 
management  of  the  two,  either  from  Herr  Andre's  friend  in  Vienna  or  per- 
haps from  Herr  Andre  himself.  It  was  torture  for  me  to  ask  him  for 
money,  especially  if  it  was  to  be  used  for  something  not  absolutely  neces- 
sary for  the  business  in  hand,  as  I  knew  his  opinions  in  that  respect.  Will- 
ingly as  Herr  von  Hartl  gave  money  when  it  was  needed  to  achieve  a  use- 
ful object,  so  reluctant  was  he  if  he  deemed  that  it  was  to  be  wasted.  In 
my  embarrassment  I  dropped  a  hint  as  to  the  situation  to  our  hostess, 
Madame  von  Tannenberg.  She  counseled  me  at  once  not  to  ask,  as  the 
family  would  lose  the  respect  of  Herr  von  Hartl  entirely,  and  offered  volun- 
tarily to  advance  Madame  Gleissner  four  hundred  gulden  herself,  if  I 
would  guarantee  the  payment  of  it  in  half  a  year.  Nothing  seemed  more 
certain  to  me  than  that  I  could  save  such  a  sum  in  that  time.  I  accepted 
her  offer  and  sent  the  money  to  Munich  on  the  same  day.  I  would  not 
mention  this  apparently  trivial  matter,  if  it  were  not  for  the  fact  that  in  the 
end  it  was  the  cause  of  the  ruin  of  all  my  hopes  in  Vienna. 

The  dealers  had  spared  no  pains  to  oppose  my  franchise  in  the  begin- 
ning, before  they  knew  of  my  connection  with  Herr  von  Hartl,  and  while 
they  still  considered  me  an  unimportant  foreigner,  who  had  neither  friends 
nor  influence.  When  they  discovered  the  truth,  their  noise  became  clamor- 
ous, for  they  had  to  fear  in  earnest  now  that  their  trade  would  suffer,  since 
so  eminent  and  rich  a  man  was  associated  with  the  new  art.  The  more 
important  art  dealers  feared  it  less  than  the  smaller  ones,  among  whom 
Herr  Sauer  and  the  new  Industrie-Komptoir  were  my  most  active  enemies. 


54  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Despite  this,  there  opened  a  way  suddenly  by  which  I  could  make  peace 
with  the  art  dealers  and  even  draw  considerable  profit  from  them. 

Through  Herr  von  HartI,  I  became  acquainted  with  a  skillful  clavier- 
player,  Teuber,  who  was  also  a  composer,  and  at  once  showed  great  inter- 
est in  my  invention.  He  spoke  to  his  acquaintances,  Herr  Sonnleithner 
and  Herr  Ricci.  Through  their  intervention  the  art  dealers  asked  me  if  I 
would  abstain  from  establishing  a  music-printery  of  my  own,  providing 
they  guaranteed  me  a  sufficient  amount  of  work.  I  calculated  that  I  could 
print  six  thousand  sheets  of  music  a  day  with  the  three  presses  that  I  had 
planned.  This,  at  the  low  price  of  twenty-five  kreuzer  per  hundred  im- 
pressions, would  amount  in  all  to  a  sum  of  twenty-five  gulden.  Also  if  I 
accepted,  say,  work  that  would  average  three  hundred  impressions,  there 
would  be  needed  ten  stones,  counting  two  sheets  to  each  stone.  Thus  there 
would  be  a  further  engraving  profit  of  ten  gulden,  because  I  received  fifty 
kreuzer  for  each  sheet,  but  paid  my  note-writer  only  twenty  kreuzer. 
For  house,  color,  acids,  polisher's  wages,  etc.,  there  must  be  reckoned  four 
gulden  a  day.  The  six  printers  to  operate  the  three  presses  would  cost  four 
gulden  a  day  also.  Now  if  I  reckoned  two  gulden  a  day  for  possible  acci- 
dental errors,  etc.,  there  would  still  remain  twenty-five  gulden  a  day  profit. 
This  meant  seven  thousand  and  five  hundred  gulden  clear  profit  in  the 
three  hundred  working  days  of  a  year,  without  the  least  risk. 

As  I  considered  this  a  satisfactory  profit  for  one  single  branch  of  my  art, 
I  told  Herr  Sonnleithner  that  I  would  attempt  to  induce  Herr  von  Hartl 
to  give  up  the  idea  of  establishing  his  own  publishing  house,  provided  that 
the  united  art  dealers  would  guarantee  me  that  amount  of  work  and  agree 
also  to  reimburse  me  if  the  presses  were  not  kept  busy,  excepting  through 
my  own  fault.  Herr  Sonnleithner  welcomed  the  proposal,  not  doubting 
that  the  dealers  would  need  all  the  work  stipulated,  and,  indeed,  declaring 
that  the  Art  and  Industrie-Komptoir  alone  might  give  me  twice  that  much. 

I  knew  that  Herr  von  Hartl  had  entertained  little  regard  for  this  branch 
of  work.  Therefore  I  thought  it  would  delight  him  to  find  that  he  could 
not  only  relieve  himself  from  further  expense  in  this  line,  but  gain  several 
thousand  gulden.  I  was  mistaken.  He  deduced  that  music-printing  was 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  55 

not  so  unimportant  as  he  had  imagined ;  and  he  told  me  to  inform  the 
dealers  that  I  would  take  as  much  work  as  they  offered  at  low  prices,  but 
that  we  could  not  make  ourselves  dependent  on  them. 

As  the  dealers  refused  decidedly  to  give  me  the  means  with  their  own 
hands  of  building  up  a  great  establishment,  the  project  fell  entirely. 

However,  Herr  von  Hartl  now  had  declared  himself  in  favor  of  estab- 
lishing a  music-printery ;  and  a  few  days  later  there  came  a  highly  favor- 
able opportunity  to  start  one  at  once  under  happy  auspices,  together  with  a 
complete  art  publishing  establishment. 

An  acquaintance  of  my  landlady,  to  whom  I  had  showed  my  printery, 
sent  for  me  to  tell  me  that  Herr  Eder,  an  art  dealer,  wished  to  give  up  his 
business  because  of  illness  and  was  willing  to  sell  reasonably.  This  friend 
enlarged  on  the  luck  it  would  be  to  obtain  this  well-situated  shop,  which 
earned  several  thousand  gulden  by  printing  birthday  and  New  Year's 
cards  alone,  at  the  very  easy  terms  which  Herr  Eder  had  suggested  provi- 
sionally. He  desired  me  to  see  him  at  once,  under  the  pledge  of  secrecy, 
which  pledge  Herr  von  Hartl  was  to  give  also,  as  Herr  Eder  did  not  wish 
to  injure  his  credit  by  offering  his  establishment  openly  for  sale. 

Herr  Eder  did,  indeed,  offer  most  favorable  terms,  according  to  my 
opinion.  He  showed  me  that  on  the  average  the  net  profit  of  his  business 
had  been  ten  thousand  gulden  annually  during  the  last  ten  years.  (At  that 
time  the  gulden  notes  stood  at  par.)  Furthermore  he  estimated  the  value 
of  all  his  printed  stock  only  at  the  cost  of  manufacture,  and  the  great  stock 
of  copper  plates,  many  newly  etched,  at  merely  their  value  as  copper.  The 
large  stock  of  different  papers,  with  the  many  writing  and  drawing  mate- 
rials, were  estimated  at  cost  value,  also.  For  his  trading  rights,  and  for  his 
excellent  rental  contract  which  had  many  years  to  run,  he  did  not  ask  any- 
thing. The  sum  that  he  asked  for  everything  was  forty  thousand  gulden, 
of  which  only  ten  thousand  gulden  were  to  be  paid  at  once,  the  rest  being 
paid  in  annual  installments  during  the  following  ten  years. 

If  Herr  von  Hard  had  accepted  this,  there  would  have  been  four  thou- 
sand gulden  net  profit  a  year  in  it.  And  by  combining  with  it  the  advan- 
tages of  the  new  process,  the  profit  was  certain  to  be  greater.  To  begin  a 


56  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

new  publishing  house  without  mercantile  knowledge,  without  knowing 
what  the  public  wanted,  would  be  far  more  difficult  than  to  continue  one 
that  already  was  in  operation,  especially  so  as  Herr  Eder  had  offered  to 
remain  for  a  year  as  associate  to  teach  me  the  business. 

I  cannot  yet  understand  why  Herr  von  Hartl  discarded  this  proposition. 
Perhaps  he  feared  that  he  would  be  overreached  in  some  way.  He  might 
have  been  more  receptive  had  he  been  able  to  foresee  that  his  new  establish- 
ment would  cost  him  a  sum  of  twenty  thousand  gulden  within  a  very  few 
years  without  advancing  toward  being  even  the  ghost  of  a  business.  Per- 
haps I  did  not  possess  the  gift  of  convincing  others.  At  any  rate,  both 
projects  failed  to  meet  with  approval.  That  Herr  von  Hartl  could  be 
convinced,  however,  even  to  his  plain  injury,  I  will  prove  later.  For 
lithography  the  failure  of  this  plan  was  a  great  loss,  because  it  would  have 
given  me  opportunity  to  get  into  the  art  line  ten  years  earlier  than  I  did, 
and  make  useful  application  of  my  inventions. 

The  family  Gleissner  now  arrived  in  Vienna  and  brought  one  of  my 
former  apprentices,  Mathias  Griinewald,  Meantime  some  presses  had 
been  completed,  and  we  could  begin  to  print.  Gleissner's  symphonies 
recently  had  been  much  praised  in  a  musical  paper  of  Leipsic,  and  he  pro- 
posed to  us  to  begin  with  a  few  of  his  works.  Of  course  it  would  have  been 
wiser  to  begin  with  a  good  work  by  a  famous  man,  whose  name  was  suffi- 
ciently popular  in  Vienna.  I  did  visit  Herr  Doctor  Haydn,  but  received 
the  reply  that  he  could  not  compose  any  more  and  would  only  review  old 
works  thenceforth. 

Immediately  at  the  commencement  a  stock  of  stones  was  needed.  As 
we  could  foresee  that  we  should  need  some  thousands  of  stones  in  the  course 
of  time,  Herr  von  Hartl  decided  to  make  a  trip  with  me,  by  way  of  Munich 
and  Augsburg,  to  the  quarries  of  Solenhofen  that  we  might  inform  our- 
selves on  the  spot  about  the  best  way  to  get  stones. 

A  further  inducement  to  make  this  journey  was  that  he  wished  to  ex- 
amine the  estate  of  Niedau,  which  had  been  described  as  being  very 
favorably  situated  for  the  erection  of  manufactories.  Herr  von  Hartl 
already  had  a  large  spinnery  in  operation.  This,  and  perhaps  the  printery, 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  57 

he  planned  to  establish  in  Niedau,  because  there  both  workers  and  prop- 
erty were  cheaper.  He  intended  to  leave  only  the  business  offices  in 
Vienna. 

The  establishment  of  this  spinnery  had  so  important  an  effect  on  my 
fate  as  well  as  on  the  future  of  lithography  that  I  must  describe  it  here. 
When  I  arrived  in  Vienna,  Count  von  Saurau  had  just  gone  to  Petersburg 
as  Austrian  Ambassador.  Being  a  patron  of  home  industries,  he  had  ad- 
vanced ten  thousand  gulden  some  time  before  to  an  expert  spinner  named 
Mistelbauer,  to  erect  looms  for  manufacturing  fine  English  and  French 
stuffs  in  Austria,  a  work  for  which  Mistelbauer  was  perfecdy  qualified. 
When  the  Count  departed,  Herr  von  Hartl  took  charge  of  several  of  his 
interests,  among  them  the  Mistelbauer  spinnery.  Thus  at  the  next  Vienna 
Messe  (market-fair),  Mistelbauer  visited  Herr  von  Hartl  to  make  an 
accounting.  The  goods  that  Mistelbauer  had  brought  convinced  Herr  von 
Hartl  of  his  skill  and  technical  capacity.  The  details  of  his  processes,  and 
his  ingenuity  in  operating  so  many  looms  with  so  little  capital,  indicated  to 
Herr  von  Hartl  that  increased  capital  would  bring  enormously  increased 
results.  As  the  spinnery  company  had  as  good  as  decided  that  a  good  part 
of  their  own  products  should  be  further  worked  by  themselves,  Herr  von 
Hartl  considered  it  a  lucky  circumstance  to  meet  a  particularly  good 
weaver  and  also  a  cotton-printer,  who  alleged  that  he  could  print  the 
home-made  cottons  exactly  as  well  as  the  English  printers  and  possibly  at 
smaller  cost. 

He  wrote  to  Count  von  Saurau  that  he  was  willing  to  assist  Mistelbauer 
with  more  money.  Count  Saurau  agreed,  and  Herr  von  Hartl  advanced 
money  to  Mistelbauer  till  it  reached  a  sum  of  forty  thousand  gulden.  He 
appeared  only  as  a  creditor,  however,  and  held  a  mortgage  on  the  entire 
spinnery,  with  all  its  present  and  future  stock,  in  order  to  be  covered 
should  the  operations  fail. 

Now  Mistelbauer  was  a  man  who  had  little  or  no  mercantile  talent.  He 
did  not  understand  book-keeping,  and  though  he  had  managed  the  origi- 
nal small  establishment  pretty  well,  he  was  not  equal  to  the  bigger  one.  A 
factor  should  have  been  appointed  to  manage  the  commercial  end  and  the 


58  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

accounts.  Another  trouble  was  that  Herr  von  Hartl,  in  order  to  satisfy 
himself,  continually  demanded  new  sample  work  from  him,  which,  on  the 
other  hand,  pleased  Mistelbauer,  as  it  enabled  him  to  show  his  skill. 

Thus,  instead  of  working  steadily  along  the  original  sound  lines,  he  kept 
going  into  new  things.  Among  others  he  erected  looms  to  make  color,  and 
print  Manchester  fabrics.  Regardless  of  the  fact  that  I  (as  he  well  knew) 
was  working  at  cotton-printing,  and  that  Herr  von  Hartl  intended  to  work 
my  inventions,  he  managed  to  induce  that  gentleman  to  let  him  erect  a 
cotton-printery,  a  matter  which  he  did  not  understand  in  the  least. 

Mistelbauer  had  been  a  poor  peasant  boy  of  Helmannsod  by  Linz.  He 
had  gone  into  foreign  lands  in  his  youth,  but  when  he  obtained  the  ten 
thousand  gulden  from  Count  Saurau,  he  selected  his  native  place  for  the 
works.  Even  at  that  time  his  improved  condition  aroused  the  envy  of  the 
village ;  but  he  lived  in  a  poor  hut  and  differed  in  nothing  from  the  other 
inhabitants.  When  Herr  von  Hartl  assisted  him,  he  succeeded  soon  in  con- 
vincing him  that  they  needed  more  room,  and  obtained  his  consent  for 
building.  Instead  of  erecting  a  factory,  he  erected  a  considerable  dwelling, 
the  cost  of  which  was  far  beyond  the  original  estimates.  On  account  of  all 
the  other  work  undertaken  at  the  same  time,  nothing  could  be  finished  in 
time,  and  Mistelbauer  was  continually  too  late  for  the  markets  with  his 
product.  As  a  result,  instead  of  being  punctual  with  all  his  payments  as  he 
had  been  heretofore,  he  could  not  even  pay  his  interest,  and  Herr  von  Hartl 
had  to  make  new  advances  all  the  time.  Naturally  Herr  von  Hartl  began 
to  feel  apprehensive,  and  he  decided  to  visit  Mistelbauer  on  the  occasion 
of  our  journey  to  Solenhofen, 

When  we  reached  Helmannsod,  Herr  von  Hartl  shook  his  head  dubi- 
ously, especially  when  he  found  the  accounts  in  the  greatest  disorder.  But 
the  great  stock  of  goods,  though  most  of  them  were  only  half  finished,  and 
the  thought  that  everything  could  be  made  to  go  smoothly  again  with  bet- 
ter management,  encouraged  him,  and  he  instructed  Mistelbauer,  showing 
him  how  to  establish  order  in  his  works  as  well  as  in  the  accounts. 

Then  we  continued  our  journey.  In  Munich,  where  we  remained  three 
days,  I  visited  my  mother  and  my  brothers,  who  all  lived  together  and 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  59 

were  operating  a  press  that  worked  mostly  for  Herr  Falter,  According  to 
their  assurances,  their  income  had  hardly  sufficed  to  support  them. 

In  Augsburg,  Herr  von  Hartl  contracted  with  a  paper  dealer  for  the 
paper  necessary  for  music-printing,  and  in  Solenhofen  he  bought  several 
hundred  stones  for  this  work  and  made  arrangements  for  future  supplies. 
Then  we  returned  through  Regensburg  and  Passau.  This  whole  journey 
was  one  of  the  greatest  pleasures  of  my  life.  The  weather  was  excellent, 
and  Herr  von  Hartl  was  so  kind  to  me  that  I  was  more  than  ever  con- 
vinced of  his  sincere  desire  for  my  success. 

We  engaged  two  writers  of  music  immediately  on  our  return  to  Vienna. 
One  was  J.  Held,  a  young  man  recently  married,  who  earned  his  living  by 
teaching  and  copying.  The  second  was  his  brother-in-law.  They  compre- 
hended the  process  quickly  and  soon  were  so  skillful  that  each  earned 
twelve  gulden  and  more  a  week,  despite  the  fact  that  we  rarely  paid  them 
more  than  twenty  and  twenty-four  kreuzer  for  each  sheet. 

The  new  smaller  works  of  Herr  Gleissner  were  finished  very  soon,  and 
it  became  necessary  to  find  more  work  to  keep  my  etchers  and  four  prin- 
ters busy.  I  asked  Herr  von  Hartl  to  buy  some  compositions  from  Vien- 
na's best  musicians,  such  as  Krommer,  Beethoven,  etc.  He  was  willing, 
but  desired  to  wait  for  a  proper  opportunity  to  speak  to  Herr  Krommer. 
Thus  some  weeks  passed,  and  in  order  to  keep  the  force  busy,  Herr  Gleiss- 
ner composed  continually  and  printed  his  work.  Nearly  a  whole  year 
passed  that  way,  and  still  Herr  von  Hartl  had  found  no  opportunity  (owing 
to  his  many  affairs)  to  arrange  with  Herr  Krommer  or  other  composers. 

So  it  happened  that,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  overtures,  our  whole 
stock  of  paper  and  a  whole  year's  work  were  used  solely  to  print  Herr 
Gleissner 's  compositions.  I  myself  had  hardly  anything  to  do  with  this 
printing,  which  was  managed  entirely  by  Herr  Gleissner ;  for  I  devoted  all 
my  time  to  the  study  of  color  and  to  the  necessary  thousands  of  experi- 
ments. 

Here  I  had  made  the  unpleasant  discovery  that  most  of  what  was  in  the 
books  was  incorrect,  or  so  incompletely  stated  that,  before  one  could  under- 
stand the  instructions,  one  needed  to  know  the  entire  process  of  cotton- 


6o  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

making  and  printing.  I  cannot  understand  now  why  it  never  struck  Herr 
von  Hartl  or  me  that  I  did  not  need  this  knowledge  at  all,  and  that  all  that 
was  necessary  in  order  to  apply  my  method  to  cotton-printing  was  for  me 
to  demonstrate  how  the  printing  could  be  done  well  and  quickly.  To  get 
color  results  it  was  necessary  merely  to  engage  a  good  color  expert,  who 
could  analyze  colors  and  decide  if  they  were  available  for  my  process. 
That  would  have  saved  us  a  year  and  a  considerable  sum  of  money  which 
my  experiments  had  cost.  I  confess  that  I  had  a  mistaken  ambition  on  this 
point,  wishing  to  understand  everything  myself.  Then  the  study  of  chem- 
istry was  most  attractive  to  me,  because  I  found  myself  discovering  new 
things  of  importance  for  my  art  all  the  time. 

When  at  last  I  was  completely  informed  in  the  matter  of  color,  I  went 
with  Herr  von  Hard  to  the  great  machine-spinnery  in  Pottendorf.  Here 
I  became  acquainted  with  Herr  Thornton  and  his  remarkably  complete 
installation.  With  his  assistance  we  made  a  stone-press  for  cotton,  to 
print  the  cotton  from  large  plates.  But  the  correct  register  of  each  impres- 
sion made  so  much  trouble  for  us  that  I  foresaw  the  need  for  many  further 
experiments  and  inventions.  Besides,  Herr  Thornton  was  too  partial  to 
the  English  process  of  cylinder-printing  to  feel  particularly  favorable  to 
the  stone-process ;  and  in  the  end  it  was  considered  best  to  order  a  great 
piece  of  stone  from  Solenhofen  from  which  we  might  make  an  eight-inch 
cylinder. 

It  was  six  months  before  we  obtained  the  requisite  stone.  During  this 
period  it  struck  me  that  perhaps  the  cylinder  did  not  need  to  be  stone,  but 
that  we  might  use  copper  cylinders,  as  in  England.  Herr  Thornton  ob- 
jected that  copper  cylinders  must  be  engraved  with  the  graving  tool,  and 
that  patterns  for  cotton  should  not  be  etched,  since,  if  etching  were  practi- 
cal, the  English,  who  understand  etching  perfectly,  no  doubt  would  etch 
the  cylinders. 

To  be  sure,  I  could  not  answer  this  argument,  but  I  was  convinced  that 
a  deep-etched  stone  would  print  as  perfectly  and  handsomely  as  the  best 
copper  plate.  Why,  then,  could  it  not  be  done  with  copper,  since  copper 
permitted  itself  to  be  etched  so  well  ?  I  made  a  little  experiment  at  once. 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  61 

and  it  succeeded  perfecdy.  Herr  Thornton  proposed  to  make  completely 
sure.  He  had  a  small  model  press  from  England,  the  cylinder  of  which 
had  been  engraved  by  the  best  cotton  copper  engraver  of  England. 
Though  it  was  only  six  inches  long  and  three  inches  thick  it  had  cost 
twenty  pounds  to  engrave.  He  proposed  to  have  an  exactly  similar  cylin- 
der made,  which  I  was  to  etch  in  the  same  design,  so  that  competitive 
impressions  could  be  made  with  both  cylinders.  The  proposition  was 
accepted.  To  save  money,  it  was  decided  to  make  a  cylinder  from  zinc 
instead  of  from  copper. 

After  a  few  days  it  was  ready  and  I  drove  with  Herr  von  Hartl  to  Potten- 
dorf,  where  we  arrived  at  half-past  ten  o'clock  in  the  morning.  I  started 
eagerly  to  do  the  drawing.  As  I  perceived  immediately,  it  consisted 
purely  of  circular  lines,  and  therefore  I  succeeded  in  preparing  the  cylin- 
der, drawing  the  design,  and  etching  it  before  two  o'clock,  at  which  time 
we  were  to  have  luncheon. 

Mr.  Thornton,  who  had  expected  that  I  would  need  at  least  eight  days, 
was  astonished  by  my  speed.  To  all  appearances,  the  etched  cylinder  was 
as  good  as  the  engraved  one,  and  now  it  was  merely  a  question  of  the  print- 
ing. He  made  the  first  impression  with  the  copper  cylinder,  which,  of 
course,  produced  a  very  pretty  piece  of  work.  But  when  mine  was  ad- 
justed and  the  first  impression  came  out,  the  astonishment  of  all  present 
reached  its  maximum,  for  the  impressions  were  exactly  as  clear,  but  at 
least  twice  as  strong  and  therefore  more  beautiful.  The  reason  for  this 
was  that  the  engraving  became  narrower  at  the  bottom,  and  therefore 
held  hardly  half  as  much  color  as  the  etched  lines. 

The  practicability  of  my  etching  process  was  settled ;  and  Herr  von 
Hard  waited  only  to  lay  the  matter  before  the  society  at  the  next  general 
meeting  before  proceeding  to  its  exploitation  on  a  large  scale. 

Truly  it  was  high  time  for  him  to  get  some  returns  for  his  many  ex- 
penses. The  stone-printery  had  cost  him  at  least  six  thousand  gulden  to 
this  date.  In  return  for  this  investment  he  had  a  good  quantity  of  stones, 
several  presses,  and  a  great  stock  of  Gleissner's  music,  which  represented 
an  income  of  twenty  thousand  gulden,  if  it  could  be  sold. 


62  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

At  last  we  obtained  the  long-sought  franchise  (in  1803),  and  Herr  von 
Hartl  decided  to  begin  the  business.  I  proposed  to  him  to  rent  a  shop  and 
engage  an  experienced  man  to  manage  it.  But  he  replied  that  I  was  merely 
suggesting  another  burden  of  nearly  two  thousand  gulden  a  year,  with  no 
certain  prospect  of  a  penny's  income.  Rather,  said  he,  I  was  to  give  the 
finished  work  to  the  dealers  and  let  them  sell  them  on  a  percentage,  so 
that  we  could  see  how  the  public  liked  stone-printing. 

Herr  von  Hartl  was  trying  at  this  time  to  rid  himself  of  all  expenses  that 
were  not  absolutely  necessary.  He  was  growing  more  and  more  dissatis- 
fied with  Mistelbauer,  his  health  was  poor,  and  irritating  business  troubles 
were  anything  but  good  for  him.  He  expressed  his  regret  many  times  be- 
cause he  had  undertaken  so  many  things.  His  many  enterprises,  which 
up  to  this  time  had  proved  anything  but  profitable,  took  so  much  of  his 
time  that  he  had  to  give  up  his  far  more  advantageous  interests  as  Impe- 
rial Court  Agent,  and  thus  lost  heavily  in  that  direction  also.  The  stock 
of  spun  wool  kept  piling  up  in  the  company's  magazines,  and  this,  too, 
seemed  to  promise  no  greatly  satisfactory  results. 

However,  I  could  see  that  I  could  expect  only  small  sales  in  Vienna  if  I 
depended  on  the  dealers,  who  were  my  opponents  and  would  hardly  be 
very  eager  to  aid  my  success.  Therefore,  I  conceived  the  thought,  equally 
unpractical,  as  it  turned  out,  of  putting  our  work  into  the  hands  of  a 
book  publisher ;  and  as  I  had  just  observed  much  empty  space  in  the  shop 
of  Peter  Rehm's  widow,  I  agreed  with  her  to  turn  over  our  stock  to  her  at 
twenty-five  per  cent  discount. 

It  was  arranged  that  there  be  an  accounting  each  month,  and  I  looked 
forward  to  the  end  of  the  first  month  with  great  impatience,  because  I 
hoped  for  a  considerable  income.  It  was  highly  necessary,  to  help  me  pay 
off  the  debt  that  I  had  loaded  on  myself  to  defray  Herr  Gleissner's  travel- 
ing expenses, — a  debt  that  now  had  stood  for  two  years,  and  that  the  skill- 
ful manipulations  of  my  dear  landlady  and  her  faithful  legal  adviser  had 
increased  from  four  hundred  gulden  to  two  thousand.  Many  times  during 
the  month  I  inquired  as  to  the  sales  and  received  the  answer  that  they  were 
good.  I  was  satisfied,  and  did  not  require  further  statements,  as  I  did  not 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  63 

wish  to  anticipate  the  pleasant  surprise  that  I  expected  when  the  month's 
accounting  was  made.  But  alas !  How  I  was  shocked  at  the  end  of  the 
month  when  the  sum  of  ten  gulden  and  forty-eight  kreuzer  turned  out  to 
be  all !  I  did  not  know  how  I  could  appear  before  Herr  von  Hartl  with  the 
news.  My  walk  to  his  house  was  one  of  the  bitterest  of  my  life.  I  was  not 
received  as  badly  as  I  had  expected.  On  the  contrary,  Herr  von  Hartl 
comforted  me  and  advised  me  to  have  patience,  that  all  beginnings  were 
slow,  etc.  In  short,  I  enjoyed  the  most  pleasant  anticipations  again.  Un- 
happily, at  the  end  of  the  second  month  the  accounting  gave  us  one  gulden, 
thirty-six  kreuzer.  Now  the  patience  of  Herr  von  Hartl  reached  its  end. 

He  had  just  lost  heavily  again  in  the  Mistelbauer  affair.  It  worried  him 
seriously,  and  as  his  health  continued  poor,  he  inclined  to  listen  to  the  ad- 
vice of  his  wife,  who  represented  to  him  that  he  did  not  need  to  burden 
himself  thus,  and  that  he  would  better  pocket  his  losses  and  retire  from  all 
the  matters  that  worried  him. 

Therefore,  when  his  secretary,  Steiner,  advised  him  to  send  a  certain 
Grasnitzky  to  Helmannsod,  he  accepted  the  suggestion,  and  Grasnitzky 
went  there  with  unlimited  power  to  do  what  he  thought  best.  Now  of 
course  it  was  vital  that  Grasnitzky  be  absolutely  honest,  as  otherwise  it 
was  certain  that  he  would  make  the  worst  possible  report  in  order  to  get 
everything  into  his  own  hands.  Hardly  had  he  made  a  superficial  inspec- 
tion before  he  reported  that  Herr  von  Hartl  was  being  cheated  by  Mistel- 
bauer. As  soon  as  he  had  driven  the  man  and  his  family  out  of  the  house 
and  had  gained  possession  of  the  finished  stock  that  was  on  hand,  he  took 
away  everything  that  was  in  the  hands  of  the  local  weavers,  and  trans- 
ported it  to  Linz  to  be  finished  and  sold. 

Hardly  had  Herr  von  Hartl  received  the  alarming  news  that  only  the 
highest  degree  of  commercial  talent  could  save  the  capital  that  he  had 
invested  in  this  business,  before  worse  news  came.  While  Grasnitzky  was 
in  Linz,  fire  started  in  Helmannsod  and  spread  to  Mistelbauer's  house, 
which  Grasnitzky  had  locked  up.  The  peasants  saved  their  own  houses 
and  were  not  at  all  displeased  to  let  the  handsome  new  building,  with  all 
its  machinery  and  stock,  burn  down. 


64  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

The  hard  blows  were  too  much  for  poor  Mistelbauer,  who  was  now 
reduced  to  total  beggary.  He  became  ill  and  died  soon  afterward  in  great 
misery.  Nothing  was  left  now  except  for  Grasnitzky  to  finish  the  goods  he 
had  saved,  and  to  sell  them  as  well  as  possible. 

Naturally  the  loss  was  considerable,  despite  all  efforts ;  and  of  course  it 
was  an  unfavorable  circumstance  for  me  that  this  affair  should  be  con- 
temporary with  my  failure  to  sell  the  sheet-music.  Herr  von  Hartl  lost  all 
hope  of  success  with  stone-printing,  and  probably  would  have  given  it  up 
entirely,  had  his  secretary,  Steiner,  not  advised  him  to  continue.  He 
pointed  out  that  the  small  sales  were  due  not  to  the  printing,  but  to  the 
unwise  selection  of  work,  which  was  almost  wholly  the  composition  of  a 
composer  quite  unknown  in  Vienna.  He  said  that  they  needed  a  man  as 
manager  who  had  the  necessary  knowledge  and  who  also  had  a  good  shop 
for  making  sales,  and  that  thus  stone-printing  would  become  a  veritable 
gold  mine.  He  proposed  the  antiquarian  Grund,  who  had  a  shop  in  the 
same  street  as  Herr  von  Hartl's  house.  Herr  von  Hartl  agreed. 

I  was  informed  that  hereafter  I  was  to  communicate  only  with  Herr 
Grund  about  work,  and  that  he  would  make  all  payments  in  Herr  von 
Hartl's  name,  select  the  works  to  be  published,  and  make  quarterly 
accountings,  at  which  he  would  deduct  thirty  per  cent  for  himself. 

I  was  glad,  because  it  relieved  me  of  many  cares  and  I  foresaw  success 
once  more.  New  life  came  into  the  work.  We  hired  two  more  writers,  and 
printed  bravely.  Grund  succeeded  in  inducing  Herr  von  Hard  to  increase 
his  investment  during  the  first  year  so  that  the  original  capital  of  six  thou- 
sand gulden  that  was  already  sunk  in  the  work  had  grown  to  twenty  thou- 
sand gulden.  But  when  at  last  the  fourth  quarter  passed  without  an 
accounting  from  Grund,  and  still  there  was  no  dividend,  he  lost  patience 
again,  and  no  doubt  Steiner  had  to  bear  some  censure  because  of  his  un- 
fortunate suggestion.  To  soothe  his  master  he  proposed  to  take  everything 
out  of  Grund 's  hands  and  establish  a  publishing  house.  As  this  would 
demand  more  capital,  Herr  von  Hartl  declined,  being  quite  sated.  Then 
Steiner  came  out  with  the  project :  he  would  seek  to  induce  Grasnitzky, 
who  had  done  so  much  already,  to  undertake  this  business  also ;  he  added 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  65 

that  he  himself  was  disposed  to  put  in  some  capital  and  take  a  personal 
part  in  the  business,  for  a  third  part  of  the  profits. 

Just  then  I  was  in  fatal  embarrassment.  The  legal  adviser  of  our  land- 
lady pressed  harshly  for  payment.  He  even  went  to  Herr  von  Hartl.  That 
gentleman  sent  for  me  immediately  and  declared  that  he  would  try  Stei- 
ner's  plan,  and  that  it  would  be  his  last  attempt,  and  that  I  could  see  my- 
self that  there  was  nothing  else  to  do.  Since  he  promised  to  pay  my  debt, 
and  I  hoped  for  good  results  anyway  from  Herr  Steiner's  cooperation,  I 
agreed  willingly. 

Now  passed  another  year,  during  which  a  number  of  pieces  of  music 
were  printed  under  Grasnitzky's  and  Steiner's  directions,  and  some  ex- 
periments made  in  art  work.  An  artist,  Karl  Miiller,  learned  to  draw 
nicely  on  stone  partly  with  the  pen,  partly  with  the  brush.  Among  many, 
often  very  excellent  efforts,  one  of  his  most  successful  was  a  copy  of 
Preissler's  drawing-lessons.  The  first  number  was  printed  under  my  direc- 
tion and  came  out  very  well.  The  other  numbers,  which  were  printed 
when  I  was  in  Munich  again,  were  reported  as  not  having  been  so  good. 
The  reason  probably  was  that  they  were  printed  with  a  new  press  ordered 
by  Herr  Grasnitzky,  which  did  not  have  the  power  necessary  for  printing 
from  stone,  thus  making  necessary  a  softer  color  not  satisfactory  for  pen- 
drawing.  In  the  end  Herr  Steiner  is  credited  with  having  improved  this 
press  very  much.  I  shall  describe  it  in  its  most  complete  form  in  my 
description  of  presses  which  will  follow. 

Judging  from  the  amount  of  printing  done,  Steiner  and  Grasnitzky 
appeared  to  understand  their  business.  In  a  short  time  they  actually 
printed  a  second  impression  of  some  of  the  Gleissner  compositions,  which 
met  with  good  sales,  especially  in  Poland. 

I  was  delighted  with  this  activity,  especially  as  I  hoped  for  a  part  of  the 
profit  for  myself  at  the  end  of  the  year ;  but  Herr  Steiner,  instead  of  ac- 
counting to  me,  assured  me  that  I  could  entertain  no  hopes  for  ten  years, 
as  Herr  von  Hartl's  investment  of  twenty  thousand  gulden  would  have  to 
be  repaid  before  there  could  be  any  question  of  dividing  profits.  I  realized 
what  this  meant ;  and  to  avoid  bringing  a  lawsuit,  for  which  I  lacked  the 


66  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

means  anyway,  I  decided  to  sell  Herr  Steiner  my  interests.  He  offered  me 
six  hundred  gulden,  and  when,  at  last,  I  accepted  it,  he  paid  me  fifty  gul- 
den because  he  had  a  claim  on  Herr  Gleissner  for  five  hundred  and  fifty 
gulden,  something  of  which  I  had  been  in  ignorance. 

The  loss  of  this  business  pained  me,  but  Herr  von  Hartl  comforted  me 
with  the  example  of  other  inventors,  who  had  received  no  better  returns. 

Now  the  cotton-printery  was  my  only  hope.  A  third  of  the  Pottendorf 
Company  had  declared  itself  in  favor  of  erecting  a  factory,  and  in  fact  one 
thousand  two  hundred  gulden  had  been  appropriated  to  make  a  trial 
on  a  large  scale.  I  went  to  Pottendorf  and  ordered  a  machine  in  which  the 
cylinders  were  of  cast-iron  instead  of  copper,  because  Herr  Thornton  had 
two  very  handsome  iron  cylinders,  two  yards  long  and  eight  inches  in 
diameter,  which  had  been  intended  for  another  purpose  but  were  sufficient 
for  my  trials. 

As  soon  as  the  printing-machine  was  ready,  Herr  Thornton  had  it  con- 
nected with  the  water-wheel  of  the  cotton-spinnery,  so  that  one  needed 
only  to  pull  a  cord  to  set  the  cylinders  in  motion  and  see  the  printing  of  the 
cotton  proceed  without  human  help,  as  if  of  itself.  Nothing  was  needed 
now  except  to  etch  the  design  in  the  upper  cylinder. 

The  design  consisted  of  a  simple  little  flower,  many  times  repeated,  and 
it  seemed  to  me  to  be  anything  except  difficult.  But  after  I  had  covered 
the  cylinder  with  the  etching  surface  and  started  to  work  with  the  graver, 
I  saw,  after  a  very  few  strokes,  why  it  had  not  been  possible  before  this  to 
produce  cotton  patterns  by  etching  and  why  engraving  had  been  necessary. 

It  was  not  possible  for  me  to  draw  even  three  of  the  little  flowers  into  the 
etching  surface  with  the  free  hand  so  firmly  and  evenly  as  this  sort  of 
printing  demanded  if  it  was  to  appear  thoroughly  accurate  to  the  eye. 
This  was  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  I  had  first  drawn  the  design  carefully  in 
measured  squares  on  stone  and  transferred  it  in  red  to  the  black  cylinder. 
My  strokes  were  too  trembling  and  uneven,  so  that  I  nearly  gave  up  the 
hope  of  ever  doing  anything  excellent  in  this  way,  unless  I  were  to  expend 
as  much  or  more  time  than  would  be  needed  for  the  regular  process  of 
engraving. 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  67 

The  failure  of  this  attempt,  and  the  disgrace  that  would  come  to  me  as  a 
result,  spurred  me  on  to  invent  some  method  to  overcome  the  difficulty  of 
drawing.  I  succeeded  so  unexpectedly  that  the  very  failure  became  the 
means  to  greater  perfection. 

To  cover  the  entire  surface  of  the  cylinder  it  would  be  necessary  to  draw 
thirty  thousand  flowers.  Had  I  not  experienced  the  slightest  difficulty,  I 
still  would  have  needed  half  a  minute  for  each  flower,  and  thus  I  would 
scarcely  have  been  able  to  finish  an  entire  cylinder  inside  of  a  month.  But 
I  invented  a  drawing-machine  with  which,  though  I  was  not  a  skillful 
draftsman,  I  could  draw  the  entire  design  within  two  days,  and  with  an 
accuracy  that  hardly  could  be  attained  by  the  engraving-tool.  With  this 
instrument  I  drew  the  design  on  the  black  etching  surface  of  the  cylinder, 
etched  it  and  made  a  sample  printing  which,  when  it  was  repeated  after- 
ward in  presence  of  Fiirst  von  Esterhazy  and  other  members  of  the  com- 
pany, earned  universal  praise. 

Herr  von  Hartl  planned  to  obtain  an  exclusive  franchise  for  this  cylinder 
cotton-printing,  sell  it  to  the  company,  and  have  me  appointed  as  director, 
something  like  Herr  Thornton,  who  drew  not  only  a  decent  salary  but  also 
a  fourth  part  of  the  profit  from  the  entire  spinnery.  As  I  could  see  readily 
that  a  company  with  such  enormous  resources  could  soon  bring  a  cotton- 
print  establishment  to  a  great  stage,  it  did  not  seem  impossible  to  me  that 
the  annual  income  might  rise  to  a  million,  as  in  the  Ebreichsdorfer  factory. 
If  the  net  profits  were  only  five  per  cent,  there  still  would  be  more  than 
twelve  thousand  gulden  annually  for  me,  and  I  was  sure  to  be  a  rich  man 
in  a  short  time.  So  I  thanked  Herr  von  Hartl  heartily  and  continued  to 
perfect  my  process  in  every  tiny  detail. 

The  fear  had  arisen  that  iron  cylinders  might  afi^ect  the  handsome  reds 
and  other  fine  colors.  Herr  Thornton,  who  had  become  my  friend,  prom- 
ised to  make  for  me  cast  copper  cylinders  with  iron  cores :  and  his  prepara- 
tions for  this  work  were  almost  completed  when  again  fate  ruined  all  my 
hopes. 

Napoleon  had  just  completed  the  Continental  blockade ;  and  the  Eng- 
lish cotton  stuffs  were  not  to  be  had  anywhere.  This  forced  all  the  weav- 


68  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

ers  and  manufacturers  of  the  inland  to  buy  from  the  Pottendorfer  Works, 
and  the  sale  of  their  output  became  so  great  that  the  formerly  overcrowded 
storehouses  were  emptied  in  a  short  time.  "Why  should  we  erect  a  new, 
different  factory  ?  Rather  let  us  enlarge  the  present  one."  This  was  the 
general  and  entirely  sensible  decision  of  the  company.  Herr  von  Hartl 
would  not  interest  himself  further  in  the  process,  because  our  hope  of  an 
exclusive  franchise  had  been  ruined  through  the  treachery  of  a  foreman  in 
the  spinnery,  who  had  made  drawings  of  our  machine  and  sold  them  to 
various  cotton-making  establishments,  who  were  already  imitating  the 
process.  So  there  was  nothing  left  for  me  except  to  seek  my  fortune  else- 
where. 

In  my  pain  over  my  oft-ruined  hopes  I  complained  to  a  good  friend, 
Herr  Madlener,  a  tinner  in  Pottendorf,  and  this  noble  man  was  ready  at 
once  to  seek  another  opportunity  for  me.  The  very  next  day  he  told  me 
that  a  cotton-printer  in  Vienna,  Herr  Blumauer,  would  pay  me  five  hun- 
dred gulden  for  a  small  model  press  for  cylinder  printing  on  cotton.  This 
turned  out  true.  Fourteen  days  later  he  made  me  acquainted  with  the 
brothers  Faber,  who  had  a  cotton-works  in  St.  Polten,  and  who,  on  Mad- 
lener's  recommendation,  made  an  extremely  satisfactory  contract  with  me 
for  the  erection  of  a  complete  cylinder  printery. 

I  thought  myself  happy  to  come  into  relations  with  this  firm  at  whose 
head  were  two  of  the  noblest  of  men,  and  was  just  ready  to  go  to  St.  Polten, 
when  my  destinies  received  a  new  direction  through  a  strange  chain  of  cir- 
cumstances, that  opened  for  me  an  excellent  prospect  again  of  making 
great  advances  in  improving  my  lithographic  invention. 

My  brothers  had  written  to  me  several  times  while  I  was  in  Vienna, 
complaining  about  scarcity  of  work  and  their  resultant  poverty.  There- 
fore it  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  I  did  not  exactly  long  to  return  to 
Munich,  despite  the  fact  that  my  hopes  in  Vienna  had  become  steadily 
less.  Probably  I  should  have  returned  again  to  Herr  Andre  in  Offenbach, 
as  Gleissner  and  his  family  were  pretty  well  placed  with  Steiner  and  Gras- 
nitzky,  had  not  Madame  Gleissner  conceived  the  idea  of  making  personal 
inquiries  about  the  conditions  in  Munich. 


FROM  1800  TO  1806  69 

Shortly  before,  a  Bavarian  court  musician  had  visited  Vienna  and  had 
visited  his  friend  Gieissner.  From  him  we  learned  that  my  brothers  were 
doing  very  well.  They  had  good  positions  with  the  Feyertag  School  and 
had  sold  their  franchise  for  stone-printing  to  the  Royal  Government.  It 
was  even  reported  that  they  had  formed  a  company  with  Herr  von  Hazzi  to 
establish  a  press  and  publishing  house,  and  that  they  expected  to  get  a 
comfortable  building  from  the  Government. 

Madame  Gieissner  went  to  Munich  at  once  and  ascertained  that  the 
report  was  true.  She  also  met  our  old  apprentice,  Griinewald,  who  had 
left  Vienna  in  1804  with  one  of  our  note-writers.  Held,  to  erect  a  stone- 
printing  establishment  for  Breitkopf  and  Hard  in  Leipsic.  He  had  just 
returned  to  Munich,  and  he  induced  Madame  Gieissner  to  join  him  in 
erecting  a  small  printing-house,  which  she  did  all  the  more  willingly,  since 
she  hoped  that  it  would  earn  her  expenses  for  her  in  Munich.  This  occa- 
sion led  to  her  acquaintance  with  Abt  Vogler,  who  gave  her  several  pieces 
of  music  to  print. 

Stone-printing  pleased  Abt  Vogler  so  much  that  he  proposed  to  Freiherr 
Christoph  von  Aretin,  Royal  Court  and  Central  Library  Director,  to 
establish  a  printery  and  take  into  partnership  the  inventor  as  well  as  Herr 
Gieissner.  Freiherr  von  Aretin  was  willing,  and  they  made  a  provisional 
contract  with  Madame  Gieissner,  under  which  I  and  her  husband  were  to 
go  to  Munich  and  establish  a  stone-press,  for  which  Freiherr  von  Aretin 
and  Abt  Vogler  would  furnish  the  money. 

I  was  pleasantly  surprised  when  Madame  Gieissner  returned  to  Vienna 
with  this  news.  Freiherr  von  Aretin  was  one  of  my  old  schoolmates  in  the 
Munich  Gymnasium;  and  as  he  always  used  to  gain  the  first  prize  in 
everything  from  the  lowest  class  to  the  highest,  I  had  entertained  the  great- 
est respect  for  him  since  youth.  I  would  have  thought  myself  fortunate 
even  then  to  make  his  nearer  acquaintance,  because  I  ever  have  had  a 
decided  admiration  for  remarkable  persons. 

In  later  days  it  happened  once  that  my  mother  dwelled  in  his  house  and 
could  not  pay  her  rent,  owing  to  certain  misfortunes,  and  when  she  asked 
him  to  excuse  the  delay  he  made  her  a  present  of  the  entire  sum.  This 


70  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

proof  of  a  noble  soul  was  not  calculated  to  lessen  my  regard  for  him. 
Therefore  I  snatched  at  the  proposal  with  joy. 

She  had  been  urged  earnestly  to  hurry  matters,  as  Abt  Vogler  had  vari- 
ous works  which  he  wished  to  have  printed  as  soon  as  possible.  Unfortu- 
nately my  contract  with  the  brothers  Faber,  which  I  had  signed  the  day 
before,  would  have  delayed  me  for  many  months.  I  tried,  therefore,  if  I 
could  induce  them  to  permit  me  to  spend  a  few  months  in  Munich  before 
I  started  their  work  in  St.  Polten.  The  excellent  men  agreed  gladly,  and 
even  advanced  money  to  me  that  I  might  have  various  copper  cylinders 
made  in  Munich,  so  that  I  would  be  able  to  go  ahead  without  delay  later 
in  St.  Polten. 


PART  III 

,  FROM  1806  TO  18 17 

I  LEFT  Vienna  with  Herr  Gleissner  and  his  family  in  October,  1806, 
First  we  traveled  to  Cloister  Atl  near  Wasserburg  in  Bavaria,  which 
Freiherr  von  Aretin  had  bought  recently,  and  where  Abt  Vogler 
awaited  us.  He  proposed  to  erect  the  printery  in  the  cloister ;  but  when  he 
saw  that  I  was  not  at  all  pleased  with  the  idea,  he  started  with  us  for 
Munich. 

Hardly  had  we  arrived  there  before  Abt  Vogler  suggested  several  plans 
which  all  contemplated  only  his  own  profit,  and  which  would  have  re- 
dounded to  Freiherr  von  Aretin's  disadvantage.  When  he  realized  at  last 
that  we  would  not  agree  to  his  demands,  and  when  Freiherr  von  Aretin 
insisted  that  Herr  Vogler  pay  his  share  of  the  capital  at  once  and  in  cash, 
instead  of  paying  it  by  furnishing  music  whose  value  he  set  very  high,  he 
severed  his  connection  with  our  company.  There  was  also  the  added  rea- 
son that  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences  did  not  reelect  him  as  a  member, 
a  fact  which  made  him  wish  to  leave  Munich  as  soon  as  possible. 

At  this  time  a  former  workman  of  my  younger  brother  Karl,  a  man 
named  Strohhofer,  commenced  a  printery.  Madame  Gleissner  stopped 
this  unlawful  violation  of  our  rights  with  the  aid  of  the  royal  police,  and 
this  impelled  Strohhofer  to  seek  Abt  Vogler,  probably  in  order  to  gain  his 
intercession  with  Freiherr  von  Aretin. 

Vogler  thought  that  he  had  made  an  important  discovery,  as  the  man 
knew  how  to  speak  very  impressively  of  his  knowledge  and  skill.  He 
imagined  that  he  could  publish  his  works  without  our  aid,  perhaps  even 
without  cost.  Therefore  he  promised  to  assist  Strohhofer,  made  an  ap- 
pointment with  him  for  a  future  day,  and  suggested  to  him  how  he  could 
support  himself  meantime  by  selling  the  secret  of  the  art. 


72  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Stuttgart  was  one  of  the  towns  suggested  to  him.  Strohhofer  circulated 
a  pompous  proclamation  there,  boasting  of  his  talents  and  offering  his  ser- 
vices to  anybody  and  everybody.  Thus  he  came  into  communication  with 
Herr  Cotta.  The  inferiority  and  incompleteness  of  his  knowledge  were 
perceived  very  soon ;  but  as  even  the  imperfect  results  hinted  at  the  impor- 
tance of  the  new  printing  process,  the  result  was  that  finally,  through  the 
assistance  of  an  art-lover,  Herr  Rapp,  the  book.  The  Secret  oj  Stone- 
Printing,  was  published  by  Herr  Cotta.  It  was  the  first  pubHcation  that 
showed  true  appreciation  publicly  of  the  art. 

Immediately  in  the  beginning  of  our  establishment  in  Munich,  our 
enterprise  gained  brilliant  aspects  through  Freiherr  von  Aretin's  activity. 
Several  presses  were  operated,  for  music,  for  governmental  work,  and  even 
for  art.  Then  came  the  publication  of  Albrecht  Diirer's  Prayer-Book, 
which  gave  us  an  honorable  reputation.  This  work  was  acclaimed  by  all 
art-lovers,  and  the  conviction  gained  ground  everywhere  that  the  new 
process  which  hitherto  had  possessed  few  friends,  was  not  so  unimpor- 
tant as  had  been  believed  generally. 

The  professor  of  the  Feyertag  School,  Herr  Mitterer,  had  done  impor- 
tant preparatory  work  in  Munich  to  gain  a  favorable  decision.  My  bro- 
thers had  imparted  to  him  the  entire  process.  He  had  found  that  the  so- 
called  crayon  process,  of  which  I  had  shown  proofs  as  early  as  1799,  was 
best  adapted  for  his  purpose  of  reproducing  elementary  drawing-lessons, 
and  he  had  succeeded  in  inducing  the  Government  to  establish  a  litho- 
graphic institute  under  his  direction,  in  which  my  brothers  were  employed 
as  lithographers.  To  be  sure,  this  was  a  violation  of  my  franchise ;  but  the 
reason  was  that  the  authorities  supposed  my  brothers  to  be  the  owners  of 
the  franchise,  both  on  account  of  the  name  and  because  they  had  con- 
ducted the  Munich  printery  for  some  years  in  my  name. 

Freiherr  von  Aretin  counted  on  the  sole  use  of  the  franchise,  which  he 
had  believed  to  be  unassailable  when  he  formed  our  company  and  ad- 
vanced the  necessary  money ;  but  when  in  time  he  complained  because  the 
Royal  Government  as  well  as  private  persons  established  printeries,  he 
received  the  reply  that  the  art  had  long  ceased  to  be  a  secret,  —  as  if  a  con- 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  73 

dition  of  the  franchise  had  been  that  a  useful  process  must  be  kept  secret. 
In  that  case  I  could  not  have  employed  any  man  either  for  drawing  or 
printing,  as  that  would  have  involved  the  loss  of  secrecy  and  thus  the  loss 
of  the  franchise. 

My  connection  with  Freiherr  von  Aretin  lasted  four  years.  During  this 
time  I  turned  out  a  great  amount  of  government  work,  such  as  circulars, 
statistical  tables,  charts,  etc.,  besides  many  specimens  in  various  forms  of 
art.  At  that  time  the  idea  was  first  conceived  for  the  present  text-book  of 
lithography,  and,  indeed,  we  published  the  first  installment  of  the  sample 
plates.  Still,  our  enterprise  was  far  less  successful  than  Freiherr  von  Aretin 
and  I  had  hoped. 

It  was  very  difficult  to  obtain  skillful  workmen,  especially  writers  and 
artists.  Even  Strixner  and  Pilotti,whom  we  had  engaged  and  who  worked 
at  producing  facsimiles  of  the  Royal  Manual  Drawing  Cabinet,  were  very 
slow  to  gain  the  necessary  perfection  and  speed.  And  again  we  lacked  the 
manager,  namely,  a  man  who  understood  business  and  knew  what  to  pro- 
duce and  how  to  sell  it. 

I  myself  was  heavily  burdened,  as  I  had  not  only  to  exercise  continual 
supervision  of  the  five  presses,  but  also  was  practically  the  only  one  who 
could  prepare  the  plates  for  those  presses.  Added  to  this  was  the  fact  that 
the  printers  were  almost  all  uneducated  men,  some  of  whom  could  not 
even  read,  and  they  spoiled  many  plates  that  I  had  to  reproduce.  This 
caused  so  much  loss  of  time  that  already  was  insufficient,  that  it  is  no 
wonder  that  several  presses  came  to  a  standstill  frequently.  Luckily  there 
were  government  jobs  at  times  that  demanded  fifteen  thousand  and  more 
impressions.  This  enabled  me  to  prepare  new  material  while  the  presses 
were  busy.  On  the  whole,  however,  this  work  had  the  disadvantage  of 
demanding  such  speed  that  usually  all  the  five  presses  had  to  work  at  it,  so 
that,  when  it  was  done,  they  were  all  at  a  standstill  togedier,  sometimes 
for  weeks ;  and  then  the  wages,  etc.,  consumed  the  previous  profit,  so  that 
in  the  end  little  or  nothing  was  left. 

Thus  it  was  natural  that  Herr  von  Aretin,  who  was  being  annoyed  at 
this  time  by  other  affairs,  began  to  lose  his  enthusiasm  for  lithography. 


74  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Therefore,  when  he  had  to  go  to  Neuburg  as  Governmental-Director,  and 
could  not  participate  personally  any  more,  and  when,  at  the  same  time, 
Herr  Gleissner  and  I  obtained  situations  with  the  Royal  Tax  Service,  he 
sold  the  establishment  to  Herr  von  Manlich,  the  Director  of  the  Royal 
Gallery,  and  to  Herr  Zeller,  a  merchant. 

Although  our  connection  was  broken  in  this  manner,  and  despite  the 
fact  that  we  had  not  won  the  expected  results,  still  stone-printing  had  at- 
tained respect  and  support  through  Freiherr  von  Aretin's  patronage.  We 
had  to  thank  him  for  the  fact  that  our  institution  was  praised  by  the  most 
celebrated  native  and  foreign  statesmen,  and  even  by  their  Royal  High- 
nesses, the  Crown  Prince  of  Bavaria  and  his  most  noble  sister  Charlotte, 
present  Empress  of  Austria.  Our  beloved  Crown  Prince  wrote  on  paper 
with  the  so-called  chemical  or  stone-ink,  "Lithography  is  one  of  the  most 
important  inventions  of  the  century."  And  his  noble  sister  wrote  the  short 
but  eloquent  words,  "I  honor  the  Bavarians!"  These  lines  were  printed 
on  the  stone  in  their  presence. 

His  Royal  Highness  the  Crown  Prince  exhibited  so  much  interest  in  this 
Bavarian  invention  that  he  condescended  to  order  the  sculptor,  Kirch- 
meier,  of  Munich,  to  model  my  bust  in  plaster,  so  that  in  the  future,  when 
lithography  should  have  attained  an  honorable  place  in  the  whole  public 
estimation,  it  could  be  carved  in  stone  and  erected  among  the  most  cele- 
brated artists  of  Bavaria. 

In  general  my  connection  with  Freiherr  von  Aretin  had  given  me  several 
well-founded  prospects  for  an  active  and  honorable  future.  He  promised 
that,  when  his  circumstances  permitted,  he  would  put  me  into  position  to 
use  my  entire  time  only  for  making  useful  inventions,  for  which  purpose  I 
should  have  all  the  material  and  workers  that  I  might  need.  We  would 
then  investigate  all  branches  of  art  and  industry,  to  discover  possibilities  of 
improvement.  He  possessed  the  true  viewpoint,  appreciating  how  I  could 
best  be  useful  to  the  fatherland,  and  perhaps  to  all  humanity.  I  shall  ever 
consider  it  as  my  greatest  misfortune  that  circumstances  made  it  impos- 
sible to  carry  out  this  plan,  and  thus  to  justify  the  great  confidence  that  he 
reposed  in  my  inventiveness  and  ability. 


FROM  1806  TO  18 1 7  75 

A  second  beautiful  hope  arose  in  France,  where  I  was  encouraged  by 
Freiherr  von  Aretin  to  expect  the  management  of  an  imperial  lithographic 
institute,  with  a  great  financial  allowance,  Herr  von  Manlich,  and  the 
French  artist,  Herr  Denon,  who  was  in  high  favor  with  Napoleon,  having 
made  strong  efforts  to  that  end.  This  hope  also  met  disappointment  owing 
to  the  circumstances  of  the  times. 

A  third  hope  of  no  less  importance  was  to  erect  a  cotton-printery  in 
Munich  or  Augsburg  in  association  with  His  Excellency  Count  von  Arco, 
Court  Chamberlain  of  Her  Royal  Highness  the  widowed  Kurfiirstin  of 
Bavaria.  This  was  ruined  by  the  clumsiness  of  a  Munich  wood-turner, 
who  made  such  uneven  cylinders  that  we  could  not  produce  any  satisfac- 
tory specimens.  Although  I  made  arrangements  at  once  for  a  large  Eng- 
lish machine,  like  those  used  by  Mr.  Thornton,  its  manufacture  was  so 
slow  that  two  years  elapsed,  and  during  this  time  our  entire  lithographic 
establishment  was  dissolved. 

The  idea  of  a  cotton-printery  was  an  unfortunate  one,  which  not  only 
cost  much  time  and  a  great  sum  of  money,  but  also  had  the  unpleasant 
result  that  I  could  not  fulfill  my  contract  with  the  Faber  brothers  and  thus, 
in  addition  to  the  resultant  personal  financial  loss,  had  the  pain  of  appear- 
ing before  these  most  noble  men  in  a  poor  light. 

All  this  trouble  was  caused  as  follows.  On  invitation  of  Count  von  Arco, 
his  brother-in-law.  Count  von  Montgelas,  Royal  Minister  of  State,  visited 
our  institution  and  examined  our  work.  At  the  request  of  Freiherr  von 
Aretin  I  made  an  experimental  printing  with  the  litde  model  cotton- 
printing  press  that  I  had  brought  from  Vienna.  It  won  his  approval. 
Freiherr  von  Aretin  intended  to  ask  for  a  franchise  for  this  process  in 
Bavaria,  where  it  had  not  yet  been  introduced.  The  Minister  promised 
this  and  also  held  out  the  hope  of  a  considerable  financial  assistance  from 
the  Government.  Then  I  was  foolish  enough  to  try  to  increase  his  interest 
by  telling  him  of  the  value  that  foreign  lands  set  on  this  process,  and  thus  I 
informed  him  of  my  contract  with  the  Fabers.  But  this  had  an  unexpected 
result.  His  Excellency  heard  the  information  most  ungraciously,  and  said 
that  I  must  not  hope  for  the  least  assistance  in  Bavaria  if  I  permitted 


76  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

myself  to  be  used  for  the  advantage  of  another  state.  He  even  declared  that 
there  was  a  royal  rescript  forbidding  Bavarian  subjects  from  using  an  art 
in  foreign  lands  if  its  exclusive  use  were  of  importance  for  Bavaria.  This 
rescript,  said  he,  fitted  my  case  exactly,  and  it  was  forbidden  to  me,  under 
pain  of  highest  disfavor,  to  proceed  farther  with  the  Austrians. 

This  embarrassed  me  mightily.  Freiherr  von  Aretin  and  Count  von 
Arco  promised  to  urge  the  Minister  to  permit  me  to  go  to  Vienna,  on  the 
ground  that  this  method  of  printing  cotton  was  no  invention  of  mine,  hav- 
ing been  used  long  ago  in  England  and  for  some  time  in  Austria.  But 
Freiherr  von  Aretin  was  not  very  desirous  that  I  should  absent  myself  for 
several  months  in  the  very  beginning  of  our  enterprise,  and  thus  time 
passed  without  the  hoped-for  permission. 

As  the  Fabers  pressed  me  earnestly  to  fulfill  my  agreement,  I  devised 
a  subterfuge  that  might  permit  me  to  keep  my  promise  and  still  not  lay 
myself  open  to  too  great  a  responsibility.  I  wrote  to  them  advising  them  to 
have  their  correspondent  in  Munich  demand  through  the  court  that  I  be 
forced  to  fulfill  the  contract.  I  considered  that  the  city  courts  in  Munich 
would  have  no  particular  knowledge  of  the  royal  rescript  or,  at  least,  that 
they  would  not  immediately  remember  it,  and  that,  when  I  admitted  the 
existence  of  the  contract,  they  would  command  me  to  keep  it  at  once. 
Then  I  would  obey  immediately,  and  afterward  could  justify  myself  with 
the  Bavarian  Government  by  pointing  to  the  court's  decree. 

It  would  surely  have  succeeded  had  not  the  correspondent  of  the  Fabers 
failed  in  business  after  bringing  suit,  owing  to  which  the  matter  got  into 
another  lawyer's  hands.  This  man  immediately  adopted  a  new  strange 
course.  Instead  of  demanding  a  fulfillment  of  the  contract,  he  sued  for 
twelve  thousand  gulden  damages  for  their  loss  of  time.  Of  course  I  had  to 
fight  for  my  skin  now ;  and  as  he  refused  to  content  himself  with  my  agree- 
ment to  fulfill  the  contract,  I  was  forced  at  last  to  defend  myself  by  falling 
back  on  the  royal  rescript.  Thus  I  escaped  by  merely  repaying  the  money 
already  advanced ;  but  I  lost  the  considerable  sum  that  would  have  been 
assured  to  me  had  I  been  permitted  to  spend  only  two  months  in 
St.  Polten. 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  77 

Thus  none  of  the  good  prospects  that  opened  themselves  through  my 
connection  with  Freiherr  von  Aretin  proved  so  good  as  I  had  been  justified 
in  hoping :  nay,  it  seemed  as  if  I  had  only  labored  day  and  night  to  give 
others  the  benefits  accruing  from  my  painful  labors,  while  I  barely  sup- 
ported existence. 

Freiherr  von  Aretin  wished  that  the  management  of  the  business  be  in 
the  hands  of  a  man  who  possessed  his  own  fullest  confidence,  but  whom  I 
did  not  consider  at  all  suitable,  as  he  was  a  royal  official  and  as  such  could 
not  do  business  in  a  public  shop.  Consequently  the  trade  was  carried  on  in 
his  own  residence,  which  was  known  to  only  few  people  and  where  nobody 
looked  for  the  manifold  things  that  we  could  have  produced  to  good  profit. 
This  at  last  lowered  our  establishment  to  a  mere  job  printery,  which  finally 
could  not  maintain  itself,  because  more  and  more  similar  establishments 
were  started  in  Munich,  and  the  prices  for  work  became  lower  and  lower 
through  their  hungry  competition. 

It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  tell  briefly  how  so  many  printeries  hap- 
pened to  be  undertaken. 

The  first  was  established  by  Gleissner  and  myself,  and  was  continued 
afterward  in  my  name  by  my  brothers  Theobald  and  George,  until  1805. 
They  sold  the  secret  to  the  Feyertag  School,  where  an  excellent  art  insti- 
tute developed  gradually  under  Herr  Mitterer. 

Strohhofer  learned  the  elements  of  the  process  from  my  brother  Karl, 
and  associated  himself,  in  1806,  with  Herr  Sidler,  royal  court  musician, 
who  had  studied  first  with  my  brothers,  then  with  Madame  Gleissner,  and 
then  in  the  Aretin  printery.  When  Strohhofer  left  Munich,  Sidler  erected  a 
stone-printery  for  the  Government,  and  after  he  had  obtained  an  official 
permit  before  the  expiration  of  my  franchise,  he  established  his  own 
institution,  producing  very  good  work. 

During  this  time  Madame  Gleissner  had  petitioned  tlie  Government 
frequently  for  sufficient  work  to  assist  her,  and  had  obtained  the  promise 
through  His  Excellency  the  Ministerof  State,  vonMontgelas.  Thenit  hap- 
pened that  the  chief  of  a  newly  organized  bureau,  Freiherr  von  Hartmann, 
having  a  great  deal  of  writing  to  do  in  beginning  his  new  work,  decided  to 


78  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

introduce  lithography  for  the  purpose  of  saving  labor.  His  intention  was 
to  have  it  all  done  in  our  institution.  No  doubt  he  had  communicated  this 
plan  to  von  Montgelas ;  for  as  he  met  Madame  Gleissner  about  this  time, 
and  she  asked  again  for  work,  he  said  that  he  had  given  Senefelder  enough 
work  to  keep  ten  presses  busy,  and  if  he  had  not  yet  received  it,  he  would 
get  it  soon  through  Freiherr  von  Hartmann.  There  evidently  was  a  mis- 
understanding here  on  account  of  the  name.  When  Freiherr  von  Hart- 
mann sent  one  of  his  subordinates  to  call  Senefelder  to  him,  he  brought  my 
brother  Theobald,  who  immediately  got  orders  to  establish  a  lithographic 
office,  and  shortly  afterward  was  appointed  Inspector  of  Lithography. 
Beside  a  considerable  salary,  he  received  the  following  other  incomes, 
first,  excellent  pay  for  all  work  that  was  turned  in ;  second,  an  agreement 
that  if  his  ten  presses  could  not  be  sufficiently  employed  by  the  bureau,  he 
might  work  for  other  governmental  bureaus  and  for  private  persons.  Thus 
he  received  a  great  deal  of  work,  among  other  jobs  the  printing  of  pass- 
ports for  the  Ministry  of  Foreign  Affairs,  which  earned  large  sums  for 
him  in  a  short  time  and  placed  him  in  very  good  circumstances. 

He  could  not  conceal  his  good  luck,  and  so  it  came  that  many  people 
imagined  that  stone-printing  was  a  means  for  getting  rich  quickly,  which 
resulted  in  a  disproportionate  growth  of  new  shops.  Out  of  his  own  there 
sprang  two,  namely,  those  of  Helmle  and  Roth,  who  erected  their  own 
printeries  under  the  permit  of  the  police. 

At  the  same  time  a  lithographic  institution  was  erected  in  the  Royal 
Asylum  for  the  Poor  on  the  Anger ;  and  a  Herr  Dietrich,  of  a  government 
bureau,  also  established  one. 

My  own  prospects  became  worse  and  worse  toward  the  year  1810. 
Though  I  may  flatter  myself  that  I  perfected  myself  very  greatly  through 
unceasing  practice  and  thousands  of  experiments,  still,  without  a  fortunate 
accident,  it  might  well  have  happened  that  I  would  have  been  forced  to 
think  it  lucky  if  I  could  obtain  work  under  one  of  my  former  apprentices. 

I  even  suffered  the  insult  of  having  the  papers  declare  that  though  I  had 
invented  the  art  roughly,  I  had  kept  it  secret  for  a  long  time  through  self- 
ishness, and  had  never  understood  how  to  use  it  for  anything  except 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  79 

merely  printing  music.  The  falsity  and  humiliating  character  of  this  state- 
ment were  bound  to  pain  me  the  more  bitterly,  since  all  other  stone-artists 
and  stone-printers  had  learned  only  from  me,  and  not  one  (not  even  Herr 
Mitterer,  the  most  expert  and,  perhaps  because  of  that,  the  most  modest) 
possessed  the  art  as  a  whole,  in  all  its  parts,  as  perfectly  as  I  did.  I  hope 
that  my  text-book  will  prove  this. 

So  far  as  the  secret  was  concerned,  the  statement  was  an  evident  false- 
hood. Since  the  moment  when  I  received  the  exclusive  franchise  in  Ba- 
varia, in  the  year  1799,  I  had  made  no  secret  of  any  part  of  my  process 
toward  any  living  being.  I  showed  the  whole  manipulation  to  my  work- 
men as  well  as  to  all  strangers.  Those  who  knew  me  more  intimately  and 
realized,  therefore,  that  I  could  not  resist  the  desire  for  communicating 
anything  that  I  discovered  to  benefit  mankind,  often  censured  me  severely 
for  my  frankness,  saying  that  I  could  have  been  a  millionaire  had  I  kept 
my  art  a  secret.  But  this  was  equally  erroneous.  I  never  could  have 
succeeded  to  any  degree  with  my  own  means. 

The  false  belief  that  I  desired  exclusive  enjoyment  of  the  results  of 
stone-printing,  is  in  direct  contradiction  of  the  fact  that  the  lack  of  secrecy 
was  held  to  invalidate  my  exclusive  franchise.  The  idea  may  have  arisen, 
at  least  partly,  through  the  circumstance  that  several  of  my  former  work- 
men, or  others  who  learned  something  of  the  art,  made  a  wonderful  secret 
of  it,  in  order  to  be  considered  more  important.  This  was  carried  to  such 
an  extent  that  some  traveled  from  place  to  place  and  sold  their  knowledge 
to  many  people  for  large  sums  under  the  seal  of  confidence.  I  pity  those 
who  thus  received  in  exchange  for  their  money  something  of  little  or  no 
use,  when  they  could  have  learned  from  me  for  practically  nothing,  as  it 
always  was  my  greatest  delight  to  converse  with  intelligent  men  about 
those  subjects  that  interested  me  so  deeply  as  inventor. 

After  making  this  little  excursion,  which  was  needed  for  my  justifica- 
tion, I  return  to  my  story. 

There  were,  then,  in  1809,  six  public  printeries  in  Munich  besides  mine, 
without  reckoning  those  which  several  artists  had  made  for  their  own  use. 
The  foremost  among  the  latter  was  Herr  Mettenleithner,  Royal  Copper 


8o  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

Plate  Engraver.  He  was  one  of  the  first  to  whom  I  had  shown  specimens, 
as  early  as  1796,  of  the  new  process,  but  he  had  paid  little  attention  to  it. 
Partly  through  various  very  excellent  specimens  from  Herr  Mitterer's 
print,  and  partly  through  the  work  of  Strixner  and  Pilotti,  he  was  induced 
to  make  experiments.  A  son  of  Herr  von  Dall'  Armi,  who  was  taking 
lessons  just  then  in  drawing  and  copper  etching  for  his  own  pleasure, 
interested  himself  in  the  process.  As  a  result,  the  latter  established  a 
lithographic  institution  in  Rome,  which,  so  far  as  I  know,  never  achieved 
any  decided  success. 

Soon  afterward  Herr  Mettenleithner,  in  association  with  one  of  the  best 
of  the  Aretin  printers,  a  man  named  Weishaupt,  laid  the  foundation  for 
the  stone-printery  of  the  Royal  Tax  Commission  (Konigliche  Unmittel- 
bare  Steuer-Ka taster- Kommission),  which  is  now  the  most  important  of 
all  the  hthographic  institutions  of  Munich.  A  little  later  a  similar  institu- 
tion was  founded  for  reproduction  purposes  by  the  Royal  Privy  Council, 
through  Herr  Mettenleithner's  son-in-law,  Herr  Winter. 

Herr  Mettenleithner  was  appointed  director  of  the  great  establishment, 
which  employed  some  thirty  engravers,  to  etch  the  plans  of  the  Steuer- 
Kataster,  which  received  fifteen  to  twenty  thousand  impressions  each.  At 
this  time  the  Kingdom  of  Bavaria  was  being  charted  in  great  detail  for 
tax-regulation  purposes,  under  the  management  of  Privy  Councilor  von 
Utzschneider,  the  man  who  has  done  so  much  for  Bavaria's  home  indus- 
tries. There  were  required  at  least  two  exact  copies  of  each  map,  and  close 
calculation  proved  that  it  would  be  possible  to  etch  the  charts  on  stone 
and  make  several  hundred  impressions  for  the  money  that  these  two 
copies  would  cost  if  done  by  hand.  In  addition,  each  of  these  impressions 
was  good  enough  to  serve  as  an  original. 

The  lithographic  institution  of  the  Royal  Steuer-Kataster  had  been  in 
operation  for  some  time  when  a  trivial  occurrence  had  the  most  important 
effect  on  my  fate. 

It  became  necessary  to  print  a  sheet  of  such  great  size  that  there  hap- 
pened to  be  no  stone  in  Munich  large  enough.  Weishaupt  remembered 
that  he  had  seen  stones  in  my  possession  which  I  had  purchased  partly  for 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  81 

map-work  and  partly  for  printing  cotton  and  tapestries.  He  sent  a  printer 
to  me  with  a  letter  from  Royal  Tax  Councilor  von  Badhauser,  requesting 
that  I  sell  the  Government  a  stone  of  the  necessary  dimensions.  Herr  von 
Badhauser  was  a  friend  of  my  father,  and  I  myself  always  had  entertained 
the  highest  respect  for  him.  He  was  also  a  friend  of  Herr  Gleissner,  and 
had  done  many  things  to  oblige  him.  I  embraced  the  opportunity  of  doing 
him  a  favor  with  joy,  and  the  matter  probably  would  have  had  no  further 
consequences,  had  not  Madame  Gleissner  arrived  just  as  the  stone  was 
being  taken  away. 

She  suspected  that  the  stone  might  be  desired  for  a  purpose  other  than 
the  one  stated,  and  sought  Herr  von  Badhauser  to  ascertain  the  truth.  On 
this  occasion  she  complained  to  him  that  the  Government,  not  content 
with  infringing  our  franchise  by  erecting  its  own  printeries,  also  took  away 
our  workmen  after  I  had  trained  them  with  much  labor  and  expense. 

Herr  von  Badhauser  was  surprised.  He  said  that  Privy  Councilor  von 
Utzschneider  had  wished  to  turn  work  over  to  me,  but  that  my  reply  to  his 
proposal,  which  had  been  laid  before  me  by  a  designer  named  Schiesl,  had 
been  that  it  was  against  my  arrangements  to  collaborate  with  any  other 
establishment,  and  that,  on  the  contrary,  it  was  my  intention,  with  the 
assistance  of  Freiherr  von  Aretin,  to  press  our  suit  against  the  Government 
for  infringement. 

This  Herr  Schiesl,  a  pupil  of  Herr  Methleithner,  had  worked  for  us 
occasionally,  and,  indeed,  was  one  of  the  first  to  use  the  new  process  for 
drawings,  especially  pen-drawings.  As  he  was  rather  adept  and  showed 
great  interest,  I  gave  him  full  instructions  in  everything,  and  he  knew  all 
my  circumstances  exactly.  Thus  he  understood  thoroughly  that  my  future 
depended  on  the  turn  that  Freiherr  von  Aretin's  affairs  might  take,  and 
that  our  situation  was  precarious,  owing  to  the  competition  of  so  many 
establishments.  Therefore,  I  cannot  understand  how  he  came  to  utter  a 
statement  so  contrary  to  the  truth. 

Madame  Gleissner  hurried  to  Herr  von  Utzschneider  and  explained  my 
real  intentions  to  him.  He  promised  to  consider  the  matter  earnestly. 

Herr  Professor  Schiegg,  an  excellent  geometrician  and  astronomer,  was 


82  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

member  of  the  Steuer-Kataster-Kommission,  and  had  the  supervision 
over  the  entire  institution.  He  was  not  well  satisfied.  Too  many  costly 
proof-prints  were  being  made,  and  the  impressions  did  not  please  him. 
Accidentally  he  saw  my  receipt  for  payment  for  the  stone  which  I  had  fur- 
nished, and  he  observed  that  I  did  not  ask  more  for  it  than  the  Commis- 
sion had  to  pay  for  stones  only  half  as  large.  Also  I  charged  only  twenty- 
four  kreuzer  for  polishing,  whereas  the  Commission  had  been  paying  one 
gulden  for  stones  of  four  square  feet.  He  took  occasion  to  represent  to  the 
Commission  that  it  might  be  well  to  give  me  the  management  of  the  estab- 
lishment. 

Herr  von  Utzschneider  sent  for  me  and  asked  for  a  proposition.  After 
discussion  with  Freiherr  von  Aretin  I  proposed  that  the  Commission  let 
me  print  their  etched  plates  for  two  kreuzer  per  impression,  in  return  for 
which  I  would  pay  the  workmen,  defray  the  cost  of  all  printing  material, 
and  also  keep  the  presses  in  repair,  pull  necessary  proofs  without  charge, 
and  bear  the  cost  of  all  imperfect  work. 

This  plan  seemed  very  fair  to  me,  as  the  Royal  Commission  would  save 
two  thirds  of  the  expenses  it  had  defrayed  hitherto ;  but  it  met  with  such 
opposition  that  Herr  von  Utzschneider  advised  me  to  make  another  pro- 
position, preferably  one  that  involved  a  good  salary  for  myself  and  Herr 
Gleissner,  which,  probably,  would  be  received  with  more  favor.  He  added 
the  flattering  statement  that  the  Royal  Commission  would  be  proud  to 
have  me,  the  inventor  of  the  art,  in  its  employ,  and  thus  to  reward  my 
struggles  in  the  name  of  the  fatherland.  The  excellent  man  fulfilled  the 
expectations  thus  raised,  and  became  my  greatest  benefactor  and  founder 
of  my  fortune ;  for  through  him  I  won  the  prospect  of  an  unvexed  old  age, 
and  was  placed  in  a  position  where  I  did  not  need  any  longer  to  consider 
my  art  merely  as  a  livelihood.  Everything  useful  that  I  have  invented 
since  then,  and  I  hope  it  is  not  inconsiderable,  is  due  to  the  serene  and 
happy  position  in  which  I  was  placed  through  his  goodness. 

At  the  time  I  thought  also  that,  if  we  were  both  employed  by  the  Royal 
Steuer-Kataster-Kommission,  it  would  save  Freiherr  von  Aretin  the  bur- 
den of  supporting  us,  without  causing  him  damage,  as  according  to  the 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  83 

preliminary  promise  of  the  Commission  we  should  have  time  enough  left 
to  manage  his  institution.  So  I  agreed  to  assume  supervision  over  the 
Commission's  printery,  to  give  it  my  best  knowledge,  and  give  the  work- 
men complete  instructions  and  training,  for  which  there  was  to  be  a  salary 
for  life  of  one  thousand  five  hundred  gulden  for  me  and  one  thousand  gul- 
den for  my  friend  Gleissner,  with  the  rank  of  Royal  Inspector  of  Litho- 
graphy, and  with  the  right  to  maintain  and  conduct  our  own  printery. 
My  terms  were  graciously  accepted,  and  in  October,  1809,  we  received  our 
appointment. 

Only  in  the  beginning  were  my  personal  services  especially  necessary. 
Later,  as  the  workmen  grew  equal  to  their  tasks,  I  found  more  and  more 
leisure  for  dedicating  myself  to  inventing  improvements.  I  was  rather 
fortunate  in  this  endeavor,  and  the  various  processes  invented  since  1809 
would  now  be  generally  known  through  the  publication  of  many  interest- 
ing works,  had  Freiherr  von  Aretin  not  been  forced  to  leave  Munich  to 
assume  his  new  duties  in  the  Royal  Service.  This  left  my  art  without  his 
assistance,  and  our  partnership  reached  its  end  just  as  it  was  beginning  to 
attain  fruit.  My  own  circumstances  did  not  permit  me  to  continue  the  es- 
tablishment on  its  former  scale ;  therefore,  Freiherr  von  Aretin  turned  over 
part  of  it,  especially  the  art-branches,  to  von  Manlich,  the  Director  of  the 
Royal  Gallery,  and  another  part  to  Herr  Zeller.  The  latter  soon  gave  up 
the  printing  business  as  incompatible  with  his  other  interests,  but  he  did 
a  great  deal  for  domestic  art  and  industry  later  by  opening  a  warehouse 
for  its  products,  also  by  publishing  a  paper  and  issuing  many  lithographic 
art  productions. 

I  kept  one  or  two  presses  for  myself,  and  as  I  married  the  daughter  of 
the  Royal  Chief  Auditor  Versch  in  January,  1810,  I  hoped  to  teach  my 
wife  to  manage  a  small  business.  In  the  very  beginning  I  obtained  a  large 
order  for  passports  from  the  Royal  Commission  of  the  Isar,  which  kept 
the  presses  busy  for  a  month.  At  the  same  time  I  contracted  with  the 
Royal  War  Economy  Council  to  furnish  all  their  printing.  Besides  this,  I 
had  many  orders  from  another  Royal  Commission  and  from  Herr  Falter, 
so  that  my  little  establishment  was  very  busy.  Unfortunately  it  happened 


84  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

that  I  was  not  paid  at  once  by  the  Royal  Commission  of  the  Isar,  but  only 
after  four  years.  Added  to  this,  after  some  months  I  had  to  support  my 
workmen  in  idleness  for  several  weeks,  because  there  happened  to  be  no 
work  for  them.  This  gave  my  wife  so  ill  an  idea  of  the  business  that  she 
kept  at  me  till  I  promised  her  to  give  up  the  whole  thing. 

Madame  Gleissner  was  not  so  timid.  She  offered  to  take  over  my  men 
if  I  would  turn  over  to  her  the  government  work  that  I  had.  At  first  she 
did  very  well,  because  just  then  orders  came  from  many  directions.  She 
might  have  made  a  great  success,  had  her  husband  not  been  stricken  with 
paralysis,  which  rendered  him  so  miserable  that  at  last  he  lost  his  mind. 
Then  came  the  ever-growing  competition  and  at  last  the  government 
bureau  installed  its  own  plant.  Her  daughter  lost  her  eyesight  almost 
wholly  at  this  time,  so  that  the  family  fell  into  a  woeful  condition,  which 
would  be  still  worse  now  if  they  were  not  sustained  by  faith  in  the  mercy 
and  grace  of  our  best  of  kings,  who  will  surely  reward  their  efforts  for 
lithography,  which  art,  according  to  the  belief  of  all  experts,  will  ever  re- 
main a  beautiful  flower  in  the  shining  wreath  of  the  noble  Maximilian. 

As  soon  as  I  did  not  need  any  longer  to  give  up  my  time  to  earning  a 
mere  livelihood,  I  began  seriously  to  plan  publication  of  my  lithographic 
text-book,  the  first  number  of  which  had  appeared  previously  and  been 
well  received.  But  the  skill  of  the  various  lithographers  made  noticeable 
advances  every  day,  so  that  I  was  not  content  with  the  specimen  pages  that 
had  seemed  so  satisfactory  a  year  earlier.  At  last  I  fell  under  the  delusion 
that  it  was  absolutely  vital  to  my  honor  that  everything  that  might  appear 
in  my  text-book  must  represent  the  non  plus  ultra  of  the  process.  There- 
fore I  decided  to  suppress  the  first  number  entirely,  because  there  were 
sample  pages  in  it  that  represented  a  style  which  had  been  done  much 
better  since  then. 

However,  many  obstacles  opposed  me.  For  instance,  good  artists  are 
very  costly,  especially  if  they  must  learn  new  methods  and  practice  them. 
I  felt,  also,  that  many  of  my  inventions  still  demanded  many  improve- 
ments before  I  could  intrust  them  to  the  hands  of  any  artists.  Still,  I  hoped 
finally  to  accomplish  my  plan  for  publishing  a  splendid  work  which  should 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  85 

be  unique,  because  I  invented  improvements  and  perfections  daily.  When 
my  dear  friend  Andre  came  to  Munich  in  181 1,  I  laid  my  project  before 
him  and  he  was  so  taken  with  it  that  he  offered  his  cordial  cooperation. 
We  agreed  that  the  work  was  to  be  done  by  Frankfurter  artists  and  printed 
there.  But  when  I  journeyed  to  Offenbach  some  months  later,  I  discov- 
ered that  the  right  kind  of  artists  were  not  so  easy  to  find  as  Andre  had  led 
me  to  hope.  Some,  who  might  have  been  competent,  demanded  such  exor- 
bitant terms  that  the  work  would  necessarily  have  been  published  only  at 
a  huge  loss.  "Copper-etching,"  said  they,  "  we  understand.  Stone-etching 
we  must  learn.  The  latter  seems  to  us,  who  are  unpracticed  in  it,  three 
times  as  difficult.  Therefore  it  is  but  fair  that  we  shall  be  paid  three  times 
as  much."  This  sort  of  reasoning  led  me  to  return  to  Munich  to  print  the 
work  there. 

Now  two  years  passed  with  many  experiments.  Many  a  plate  was  made, 
printed,  and  discarded  because  meantime  I  had  found  something  better. 
Then  I  lost  my  beloved  wife  in  child-bed,  and  in  my  anguish  over  this  loss, 
irredeemable  as  I  thought  at  the  time,  I  forgot  all  my  projects  till  my  sec- 
ond wife,  a  niece  of  our  worthy  Choir-Master  Ritter  von  Winter,  recon- 
ciled me  with  Providence,  notably  through  her  truly  motherly  behavior 
toward  the  son  left  behind  by  my  first  wife.  I  considered  it  my  duty  now 
to  publish  my  work,  that  in  case  of  my  death  their  claims  to  honor  should 
be  established.  Without  this  incentive,  it  would  have  been  much  more  in- 
different to  me  what  men  might  think  of  my  art  or  its  inventor. 

In  1 81 6,  Herr  Andre  came  to  Munich  again,  and  I  imparted  to  him 
many  of  my  recent  inventions  in  regard  to  lithography.  On  this  occasion 
we  decided  ultimately  which  of  our  plates  should  be  put  into  the  work  and 
which  should  be  discarded.  I  promised  to  get  seriously  to  work  and  we 
looked  forward  so  confidendy  to  the  completion  of  the  entire  publication 
that  Herr  Andre  circulated  a  preliminary  notice  of  it  in  the  Easter-Messe 
at  Leipsic,  whither  he  went  after  leaving  Munich. 

Despite  this,  there  came  many  delays,  the  chief  one  being  caused  by  my 
meeting  Herr  Ceroid,  book-dealer  and  printer  of  Vienna,  who  invited  me 
to  establish  a  printery  for  him.  As  my  presence  in  Vienna  would  be 


86  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

needed  for  only  three  months,  I  believed  that  this  would  cause  no  delay  in 
the  publication  of  the  text-book,  because  the  plates  ordered  from  the 
Munich  artists  could  be  completed  during  that  time,  while  I  could  furnish 
the  text  as  well  in  Vienna  as  in  Munich.  But  I  had  the  misfortune  of  be- 
coming seriously  ill  soon  after  reaching  Vienna.  A  great  weakness  re- 
mained as  result,  and  this  made  it  impossible  for  me  to  undertake  the 
return  voyage  in  the  bad  weather  that  marked  the  winter  of  1 816-17. 

Lithography  did  not  progress  particularly  with  Herr  Ceroid  during  my 
stay,  because  he  could  not  obtain  the  franchise,  though  he  had  petitioned 
for  it  a  year  ago.  The  greatest  blame  for  this  was  due  to  Herr  Steiner's  op- 
position. This  man,  who  had  done  but  little  for  the  art  in  the  entire  time 
during  which  he  enjoyed  the  exclusive  Austrian  franchise  that  I  had 
turned  over  to  him,  did  this  from  pure  ill-will,  because  he  had  suffered 
similar  ill-luck,  as  he  said. 

So  Ceroid  could  not  establish  so  complete  a  printery  as  I  wished,  with- 
out going  into  expenses  based  on  an  uncertainty.  However,  various  draw- 
ings were  made  that  served  to  show  art-lovers  what  could  be  done  with 
lithography.  It  would  be  easy  to  perfect  this  art  immensely  in  Vienna,  be- 
cause there  is  no  lack  of  excellent  artists.  Among  those  who  interested 
themselves  at  the  very  beginning  in  Herr  Ceroid 's  undertaking  were  Herr 
Colonel  von  Aurach,  Herr  Captain  Kohl,  and  Herr  Kunike,  the  drawing- 
master  for  the  family  of  Prince  von  Schwarzenberg.  They  convinced 
themselves  with  many  experiments  that  lithography  was  eminently  suit- 
able for  the  easy  reproduction  of  many  styles  of  drawing,  and  recom- 
mended the  method  to  all  their  acquaintances.  Through  the  experiments 
of  Herr  Kunike  I  gained  the  conviction  that  one  could  print  true  originals 
by  using  a  method  of  touching  up  the  impressions. 

The  crayon  method  in  combination  with  one  or  two  tint  plates  is  the 
method  that  is  easiest  for  the  artist  to  handle.  Now  this  method  is  very 
difficult  to  print,  demanding  great  practice  if  good,  strong,  and  clear  im- 
pressions are  to  be  produced.  Since  there  are  as  yet  no  complete  printer- 
ies  where  an  artist  can  have  his  own  plates  printed  without  danger  of  dam- 
age, there  is  nothing  left  except  to  print  them  himself,  which  causes  many 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  87 

imperfect  impressions  that  must  be  destroyed  for  the  credit  of  the  artist. 
Herr  Kuniice  had  this  experience ;  but  he  took  his  imperfect  impressions, 
when  they  were  not  entirely  spoiled,  and  worked  them  over  with  black 
crayon.  It  developed  that  twelve  impressions  could  be  so  well  touched  up 
by  hand  that  they  would  fittingly  pass  as  originals,  in  the  time  which 
would  be  required  to  copy  a  single  picture  properly.  As  this  treatment  of 
illustrations  produces  their  value  only  by  merit  of  the  final  finishing,  they 
may  be  considered  as  being  the  same  as  copies  that  are  made  by  an  artist 
of  his  own  work,  wherein  it  happens  often  that  the  copy  turns  out  better 
than  the  original. 

Just  as  I  was  preparing  to  leave  Vienna  I  received  several  numbers  of 
the  Anzeiger  jur  Kunst  und  Gewerhfleiss,  in  which  Herr  Direktor  von 
Schlichtegroll,  General  Secretary  of  the  Royal  Bavarian  Academy  of  Sci- 
ences, had  inserted  several  letters  suggesting  an  inquiry  into  the  invention 
of  lithography.  He  had  used  the  information  obtained  from  my  brothers 
and  from  other  inhabitants  of  Munich.  On  my  arrival  there  I  visited  him 
at  once  to  thank  him  for  his  patriotic  endeavors,  and  to  make  some  correc- 
tions of  the  story  told  by  him.  I  had  the  fortune  to  win  him  as  a  steady 
friend,  who  became  continually  interested  in  giving  my  work  a  greater 
field. 

The  completion  of  this  text-book  is  due  to  his  steadfast  encouragement. 
He  furnished  me  with  the  opportunity  to  meet  many  worthy  men  and  also 
to  demonstrate  my  many  improvements  before  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sci- 
ences, the  Polytechnical  Union,  and  at  last  even  before  their  majesties, 
our  most  gracious  King  and  his  most  highly  venerated  spouse,  that  illus- 
trious connoisseur  and  protectress  of  the  arts.  Never  to  be  forgotten 
by  me  will  be  the  moment  when  the  gracious  applause  of  the  royal  pair 
rewarded  me  for  all  the  exertions  of  my  life.  Oh!  If  only  human  life  were 
not  so  limited,  if  it  were  granted  to  me  to  execute  only  one  tenth  part  of 
my  designs,  I  would  make  myself  worthy  of  this  great  honor  by  making 
many  another  useful  invention !  But  the  time  passes  swiftly  during  our 
helpless  wishing  and  striving ;  and  when  twenty  or  thirty  years  have  been 
lived,  there  remains  for  us  only  amazement  at  beholding  how  litde  has 


88  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

been  done  of  all  that  which  glowing  imagination  and  fiery  energy  painted 
as  being  so  easy  to  carry  out. 

When  I  saw  before  me  the  first  successful  impressions  from  a  stone,  and 
conceived  the  plan  of  making  the  invention  useful  for  myself,  I  did  not 
think  that  it  would  demand  the  greatest  part  of  my  life.  Rather,  because 
it  seemed  to  be  a  cheap  process,  I  considered  it  merely  a  first  step  toward 
putting  me  into  a  position  where  I  would  be  able  to  make  inventions  far 
more  useful  and  important.  I  must,  however,  count  myself  fortunate 
among  thousands,  because  my  invention  received  such  thorough  recogni- 
tion during  my  lifetime,  and  because  I  myself  was  able  to  bring  it  to  a  de- 
gree of  perfection  such  as  other  inventions  generally  attained  only  after 
many  years  and  long  after  the  inventor  himself  was  dead. 

Herr  von  Manlich,  the  Director  of  the  Royal  Gallery,  has  had  his  skilled 
pupils,  Strixner  and  Pilotti,  copy  many  collections  in  the  Royal  Drawing 
Cabinet  (Konigliche  Zeichnungs  Kabinett),  and  many  of  these  sheets  are 
so  good  that  competent  critics  have  declared  them  to  be  perfect  facsimiles. 

But  on  the  whole  the  publication  of  the  Royal  Gallery  of  Paintings  is 
still  more  excellent  and  has  aroused  general  attention,  which  would  be 
even  greater  if  the  printers  had  been  as  expert  as  the  artists  were.  Many 
of  these  pages  would  leave  nothing  to  be  desired  if  the  pictures  appeared 
on  the  paper  in  perfection  equal  to  the  perfection  of  the  drawings  on  the 
stone. 

The  method  used  for  these  illustrations  is  the  crayon  method,  with  one 
or  more  tint  plates.  It  is  the  easiest  method  for  the  artists  because  it  de- 
mands little  previous  experience.  To  give  it  its  correct  emphasis,  however, 
one  must  know  especially  how  to  get  the  best  effect  out  of  the  tint  plates. 
If  this  is  done  just  right,  and  if,  of  course,  the  drawing  bears  the  impress 
of  a  masterly  hand,  and  if  the  printer  understands  his  art,  the  impression 
will  be  perfectly  like  an  original  drawing,  so  that  the  most  skilled  etcher 
in  copper  hardly  can  attain  the  same  effect.  Therefore  this  method,  which 
has  the  furtfier  advantage  of  being  a  quick  one,  is  excellently  well  adapted 
for  copying  paintings. 

Hereby  I  wish  to  express  my  deepest  gratitude  publicly  to  the  worthy 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  89 

Herr  Direktor  von  Manlich  and  his  industrious  pupils  for  the  service  they 
have  done  for  the  fame  of  lithography  by  utilizing  my  inventions.  To  their 
labors,  as  well  as  to  those  of  Herr  Professor  Mitterer,  is  due  the  ever-grow- 
ing sympathy  and  interest  of  the  public. 

Herr  Mitterer  now  has  attained  such  perfection,  especially  in  the  simple 
crayon  method,  that  many  of  his  productions  probably  will  remain  the  non 
plus  ultra  of  this  method.  Lithography  also  owes  to  his  unresting  energy 
the  triumph  of  having  been  become  the  mother  of  many  useful  works  of 
instruction,  which  are  so  cheap  that  they  only  require  the  active  work  of  a 
good  art-dealer  or  book-dealer  to  become  widely  circulated. 

Besides  this,  Herr  Mitterer  is  the  inventor  of  the  so-called  cylinder  or 
pilot-wheel  press,  which  he  has  improved  so  much  lately  that  it  does 
almost  everything  that  one  can  demand  from  a  perfect  press  in  point  of 
power,  speed,  and  ease  of  operation. 

Since  1809, 1  have  dedicated  myself  almost  uninterruptedly  to  improve- 
ments, and  to  the  work  of  reducing  all  manipulation  and  processes  in  all 
branches  to  their  simple  elementary  principles.  Thus  some  of  my  earlier 
inventions  —  such  as  transfers  from  paper  which  has  been  inscribed  with 
fatty  inks,  and  the  transfers  from  new  and  old  books  and  copper-plate  im- 
pressions —  have  been  brought  to  a  high  degree  of  excellence  through  my 
manifold  experiments,  so  that  one  can  make  lithographic  stereotypes  in 
the  easiest  manner. 

Furthermore  I  have  made  such  progress  in  color  printing  that,  besides 
pictures  illuminated  with  colors,  I  can  also  produce  pictures  quite  similar 
to  oil  paintings,  so  that  nobody  can  discover  that  they  have  been  printed, 
because  they  possess  all  the  distinguishing  points  of  paintings. 

At  the  same  time  I  have  invented  a  new  method  for  printing  pictures, 
wall  tapestry,  playing-cards,  and  even  cotton,  which  enables  two  men  to 
make  two  thousand  impressions  of  the  size  of  a  sheet  of  letter-paper  daily, 
even  though  the  picture  may  contain  a  hundred  or  more  colors.  Incredible 
as  this  may  seem,  I  surely  shall  produce  extraordinary  and  amazing  proofs 
of  this  in  a  few  years  if  I  remain  alive  and  well. 

Among  the  other  methods  that  I  have  invented  since  this  time  the  most 


QO  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

excellent  are  some  aqua  tint  processes,  the  spatter-work  method,  the 
intaglio  crayon  method,  the  conversion  of  the  relief  method  into  intaglio 
and  vice  versa,  and  the  machine-written  text  for  editions  de  luxe. 

Among  other  things  I  also  sought  to  remedy  the  difficulty  which  arises 
from  the  great  dependence  on  the  skill  and  industry  of  the  printers.  There- 
fore I  planned  a  printing-machine  wherein  the  dampening  and  inking  of 
the  stones  should  be  done  not  by  hands  but  by  the  mechanism  of  the  press 
itself,  which,  in  addition,  could  be  operated  by  water  and  thus  work  al- 
most without  human  intervention.  With  this  invention  I  believed  that  I 
had  set  my  art  on  the  pinnacle  of  completion ;  and  when  in  1 8 1 7 1  exhibited 
a  model  of  this  press  (which  also  was  adapted  by  me  for  utilizing  the 
principles  of  stone  or  chemical  printing  on  metal  plates)  before  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Sciences  in  Munich,  I  was  so  fortunate  as  to  receive  its 
golden  medal  in  sign  of  universal  approval. 

But  the  most  important  of  all  my  inventions  since  my  employment  in 
the  service  of  the  Royal  Government  was,  without  question,  the  invention 
of  a  sufficient  substitute  for  the  natural  limestone  plates,  which  often  in- 
curred well-founded  censure  because  of  their  unevenness,  weight,  and  fragil- 
ity, and  have  the  further  fault  of  demanding  a  great  deal  of  storage  room. 

Before  the  Royal  Academy  of  Sciences,  and  also  before  the  Polytechni- 
cal  Society  of  Bavaria,  I  demonstrated  that  chemical  printing  could  be 
utilized  with  advantage  on  metal  plates ;  but  that  still  more  useful  was  a 
composition  of  artificial  stone  which  could  be  painted  on  metal,  wood, 
stone,  and  even  on  plain  paper  or  linen,  and  used  in  all  processes  exactly 
like  the  natural  Solenhofen  stone. 

The  countless  experiments  that  I  have  made  in  the  past  four  years  with 
this  substitute  (or,  as  some  call  it,  stone-paper),  in  order  to  prove  its  use- 
fulness under  all  circumstances,  have  filled  me  with  the  absolute  convic- 
tion that  it  replaces  the  natural  stone  completely  without  having  the  many 
faults  that  in  the  nature  of  the  case  are  inseparable  from  the  use  of  the 
latter.  In  many  respects  it  is  far  superior.  The  fragility  of  the  Solenhofen 
stone  requires  the  use  of  thick  slabs  for  printing.  If  the  impression  is  to  be 
letter-sheet  size,  the  stone  must  be  at  least  one  and  one  half  inches  thick  if 


FROM  1806  TO  1817  Qi 

it  is  not  to  crack  under  pressure.  If  the  stone  is  to  be  used  for  more  than 
one  job,  the  thickness  must  be  two  to  three  inches.  To  be  sure,  it  can  be 
ground  and  used  over  again  some  hundreds  of  times,  a  valuable  consider- 
ation in  view  of  the  capital  invested  in  a  stone.  But  such  a  stone  weighs 
from  sixty  to  eighty  pounds,  sometimes  more,  and  occupies  considerable 
space.  Add  the  investment  necessary  for  laying  in  any  great  number  of 
stones,  and  it  becomes  a  difficult  matter  financially  to  undertake  work  that 
requires  that  the  stones  be  held  for  a  number  of  years,  to  be  used  for  new 
impressions  according  to  the  sales  of  the  work.  Therefore  it  is  necessary, 
generally,  to  print  a  maximum  quantity  at  once,  so  that  the  stones  may  be 
ground  and  used  for  new  work. 

If  the  stones  are  of  thickness  correctly  proportioned  to  their  area,  the 
danger  of  cracking  under  the  press  is  fairly  remote ;  still,  it  does  happen 
occasionally  that  a  stone  incurs  damage  through  clumsiness  of  workmen. 
It  can  occur  also  through  careless  warming,  or  through  sharp  frost.  In 
such  cases  even  a  strong  stone  will  crack,  especially  if  the  workmen  apply 
undue  pressure. 

Besides,  the  necessary  stones  are  not  to  be  found  in  all  places,  so  that  the 
cost  of  transportation  prevents  the  establishment  of  lithographic  shops  in 
many  regions. 

All  these  objections  are  overcome  by  the  invention  of  stone-paper.  The 
material  advantages  of  it  are  as  follows :  (i)  The  cost  is  much  smaller  than 
that  of  a  stone  of  equal  size.  (2)  The  weight  is  inconsiderable ;  a  plate  of 
letter-sheet  size  weighs  scarcely  four  ounces.  (3)  Hundreds  of  such  plates 
piled  on  each  other  require  scarcely  as  much  space  as  a  single  stone,  and 
can,  therefore,  be  stored  or  shipped  easily.  (4)  They  resist  the  most  pow- 
erful press  better  than  do  stone,  copper,  and  even  iron  plates.  Their  inner 
elasticity  supports  the  most  extreme  pressure  without  alteration  if  only 
they  are  handled  properly.  (5)  The  application  of  fatty  inks,  and  also 
engraving  with  the  steel  graver  is  easier.  Indeed,  because  of  the  great 
toughness  of  the  stone-paper,  the  engraving  process  approaches  copper 
engraving  more  closely.  (6)  Inking  and  printing  are  easier,  and  demand 
no  such  powerful  pressure,  because  the  artificial  stone  receives  and  imparts 


Q2  HISTORY  OF  STONE-PRINTING 

color  more  readily,  than  does  the  natural  stone.  (7)  Finally,  they  are  so 
excellent  for  all  methods  of  printing  that  it  is  possible  to  reproduce  the 
original  plates  at  will  merely  by  transferring  a  fresh  imprint  to  another 
plate.  And  this  can  be  done  with  such  accuracy  that  none  of  these  plates 
can  be  distinguished  from  the  original,  so  that  the  stone-paper  surely  must 
become  of  enormous  importance  for  stereotyping  in  the  book-printing  trade. 

These  advantages,  and  others  to  be  described  on  suitable  occasion, 
elevate  this  invention  unquestionably  to  the  highest  importance  in  the  art 
of  chemical  printing,  despite  all  that  may  have  been  said  recently  by  a 
certain  writer  whose  lack  of  knowledge  forbade  correct  judgment.  The 
matter  already  has  attained  a  degree  of  perfection  that  makes  every  fur- 
ther improvement  unnecessary,  nay,  almost  impossible. 

My  many  employments,  mostly  caused  by  the  publication  of  this  text- 
book, thus  far  have  prevented  the  erection  of  my  own  manufactory  for 
making  these  artificial  stone-plates  or  stone-paper.  I  hope  to  do  it  soon, 
and  then  everybody  can  convince  himself  of  the  truth  of  my  assertions,  if 
he  will  use  the  material  according  to  my  instructions. 

This  invention  will  facilitate  the  introduction  of  lithography  in  all 
places,  because  one  can  make  the  stones  himself.  However,  lithography 
has  expanded  very  considerably  in  its  present  form,  and  has  been  brought 
into  use  in  the  foremost  cities  of  Europe.  For  instance,  it  was  introduced 
into  France  and  England,  first  by  Herr  Andre,  in  latter  days  by  the  Count 
von  Lasterie  in  Paris  and  Herr  Ackermann  in  London,  being  utilized  for 
many  kinds  of  printed  work.  In  Berlin,  Herr  Major  von  Reiche  has 
erected  a  great  institution.  In  Petersburg  the  art  has  existed  for  some 
years,  and  is  being  especially  well  cultivated  now  by  Freiherr  von  Schil- 
ling. The  art  has  entered  even  Philadelphia,  and,  more  extraordinarily, 
Astrakan,  and,  so  far  as  I  can  learn,  has  been  welcomed  heartily. 

I  desire  that  soon  it  shall  be  spread  over  the  whole  world,  bringing  much 
good  to  humanity  through  many  excellent  productions,  and  that  it  may 
work  toward  man's  greater  culture,  but  never  be  misused  for  evil  purposes. 
This  grant  the  Almighty!  Then  may  the  hour  be  blessed  in  which  I 
invented  it! 


SECTION  II 

TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

CONTENTS 

INTRODUCTION 

EXPLANATION   OF  THE   PRINCIPLES   AND  THE   PECULIARITIES   OF   STONE- 
PRINTING   AND   OF   CHEMICAL-PRINTING   IN    GENERAL 

PART  I 

General  objects  and  principles  governing  — 
(i)  the  stone. 

(2)  the  ink,  crayon,  etching  surface  and  color. 

(3)  the  acids  and  other  preparing  materials. 

(4)  the  necessary  tools. 

(5)  the  paper. 

(6)  the  presses. 

PART  II 

Enumeration  and  description  of  the  various  processes  and  particular 
objects  in  manipulating  them,  such  as:  — 

Relief  Process  — 

to  which  belong  — 
(i)  Pen  and  brush  designs. 

(2)  Crayon  drawing,  simple  and  with  several  plates. 

(3)  Transfer  and  Tracing. 

(4)  Woodcut  style. 

(5)  Two  kinds  of  Touche  drawing,  one  of  which  is  similar  to  the 
Scraped  style,  while  the  other  is  done  in  the  usual  way  with  the 
brush. 

(6)  Spatter-Work. 

(7)  Touche  drawing. 

(8)  Color  printing  with  several  plates. 

(9)  Gold  and  silver  print. 


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Intaglio  Process  — 
(i)  Carved  or  engraved. 

(2)  Etched. 

(3)  Drawn  with  prepared  ink;  with  spattered  aquatint.  - 

(4)  Aquatint  in  copper  engraved  style,  and  with  etching  ground. 

(5)  Aquatint  through  crayon  ground. 

(6)  Intaglio  crayon  through  tracing. 

(7)  Touche  drawing  with  etching  color  and  citric  acid. 
Mixed  Method:  Relief  and  Intaglio  united  — 

(i)  Pen  drawing  combined  with  engraving. 

(2)  Intaglio  drawing  with  relief  tint. 

(3)  Intaglio  and  relief  with  several  plates. 

(4)  Transformation  of  relief  into  intaglio,  and  vice  versa.' 

APPENDIX 

( 1 )  Printing  simultaneously  with  water  colors  and  oil  colors. 

(2)  Simultaneous  chemical  and  mechanical  printing. 

1(3)  Application  of  the  stone  for  cotton-printing  through  wiping  —  a 
unique  printing  method. 

(4)  Color  print  through  wiping. 

(5)  Oil  painting  print  through  transfers. 

(6)  Stone-paper. 

(7)  Applying  the  chemical  printing  process  to  metal  plates,  etc. 


INTRODUCTION 

PRINTING  from  stone  is  a  branch  of  a  new  process,  different  in 
fundamental  principle  from  all  others,  namely,  the  chemical 
process. 

Heretofore  there  have  been  two  leading  printing  processes  for  mani- 
folding writings  and  drawings,  one  working  with  characters  in  relief, 
the  other  with  sunken  characters. 

Of  the  first  kind  is  the  ordinary  book-printing,  in  which  the  characters 
are  made  of  metal  or  wood  in  such  form  that  only  those  lines  and  points 
are  elevated  that  are  to  take  color,  everything  else  being  depressed.  The 
wooden  forms  for  cotton-printing  are  made  thus  also. 

Of  the  second  kind  are  all  copper  and  zinc  plates,  and  the  cotton-print 
process  with  copper  plates  or  cylinders.  In  this  method  the  lines  and 
points  to  be  printed  are  depressed,  being  either  engraved,  etched,  or 
stamped. 

As  is  well  known,  the  first  method  of  printing  is  as  follows:  The  letters, 
which  are  all  at  the  same  elevation  and,  therefore,  furnish  a  plane  sur- 
face, are  inked  with  a  leather  ball,  stuffed  with  horsehair.  As  the  ball  is 
so  firm  and  elastic  that  it  can  touch  only  the  elevated  parts,  these  alone 
can  take  the  color,  which  adheres  because  of  its  sticky  nature.  The  same 
is  true  of  the  carved  wood  used  in  cotton-printing,  with  only  the  differ- 
ence that,  instead  of  rubbing  with  a  leather  ball,  the  wooden  plate  itself 
is  laid  on  a  cushion  covered  with  the  color,  and  then,  being  placed  face 
down  on  the  cloth,  is  hammered  gently  to  produce  the  imprint. 

In  copper  and  zinc  printing  the  method  is  reversed.  In  order  to  force 
the  color  into  the  depressed  parts,  which  alone  are  to  be  printed,  the  entire 
plate  is  coated  with  color,  and  then  the  elevated  surface  is  cleansed  again 
carefully.  The  cleaning  rag  cannot  reach  the  depressed  grooves,  so  that 
more  or  less  color  adheres  to  these  according  to  their  various  depths. 


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Under  the  powerful  press,  which  forces  the  paper  into  all  the  engraved 
parts,  this  color  transfers  itself  and  thus  gives  the  desired  impression. 

It  is  evident  that  both  methods  rest  on  purely  mechanical  principles: 
book-printing  being  based  on  the  fact  that  the  color  adheres  only  on  those 
places  that  it  can  reach,  and  copper-plate  printing  depending  on  the  fact 
that  the  color  remains  only  in  those  places  from  which  it  cannot  be 
removed  by  cleansing. 

It  is  different  with  the  chemical  print.  This  does  not  depend  on  either 
elevation  or  depression  of  the  design.  It  depends  on  the  fact  that  the 
design  is  coated  with  a  preparation  of  such  nature  that  afterward  the 
printing  color,  which  is  made  from  a  related  substance,  adheres  because 
of  its  chemical  similarity;  and  furthermore,  because  all  parts  of  the  plate 
that  are  to  remain  white,  have  been  so  treated  that  they  repel  the  color. 
These  two  purely  chemical  objects  are  attained  fully  with  the  new  process. 
Daily  experience  proves  that  all  fatty  bodies,  such  as  oil,  butter,  tallow, 
fish  oils,  etc.,  and  all  such  as  easily  dissolve  in  oil,  like  wax,  resin,  etc., 
refuse  to  unite  with  any  watery  substance  without  the  aid  of  some  third 
body  that  will  bring  about  such  union.  The  chief  solvent  for  this  purpose 
is  alkali,  which,  under  proper  manipulation,  always  produces  a  sort  of 
soap  that  then  is  soluble  in  water.  Sometimes,  to  be  sure,  an  apparent 
union  can  be  produced  by  violent  shaking  or  mixing,  without  the  use  of 
the  alkali,  but  at  the  first  opportunity  the  fatty  substances  separate 
themselves  again  from  the  watery  ones. 

It  is  on  this  fact  that  the  entire  method  of  the  new  process  is  based. 
It  is  termed  chemical  printing  with  perfect  propriety,  as  the  reason  why 
a  fatty  color,  say,  linseed  oil  varnish,  will  adhere  only  on  the  designed 
parts  of  the  plate  and  is  repelled  by  the  rest  of  the  surface,  is  due  to  the 
chemical  properties  of  the  materials. 

It  might  be  maintained  that  in  the  other  forms  of  printing,  color 
adheres  from  the  same  reason.  This  is  true,  to  be  sure;  for  it  is  a  general 
law  that  water  and  oil  will  adhere  to  all  bodies  that  are  dry.  But  it  is  not 
the  case  with  these  fluids  mutually;  and  in  this  fact  lies  the  unique  differ- 
ence between  the  older  and  the  new  processes.  A  dry  plate  would  take 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE       97 

color  over  its  entire  surface.  If,  however,  it  is  dampened,  it  will  take  oil 
color  only  on  those  places  that  are  in  a  condition  opposite  to  dampness. 
Therefore,  the  repelling  of  the  color  from  those  parts  that  are  to  remain 
white  is  the  novelty. 

It  must  not  be  imagined,  however,  that  to  print  chemically  it  suffices 
to  dampen  certain  parts  of  the  plate  and  to  coat  others  with  fatty  sub- 
stance. With  most  of  the  materials  available  for  printing,  mere  water 
does  not  suffice  to  produce  a  sufficiently  repelling  obstacle  between  the 
plate  and  the  color. 

With  flinty  and  clayey  bodies,  —  for  example,  glass,  porcelain,  slate, 
etc.,  —  one  can  manage  with  mere  water;  but  then  the  slight  adherence 
of  the  fatty  color  to  the  plate  produces  an  opposite  difficulty,  by  prevent- 
ing any  large  number  of  impressions.  S  till,  by  using  very  firm  and  readily 
drying  fatty  substances,  such  as  linseed  oil  varnish  dried  with  litharge 
of  silver  it  is  possible,  in  case  of  need,  to  succeed  fairly  well. 

But  with  such  bodies  as  attract  the  color  powerfully,  such  as  all  metals, 
wood,  limestone,  artificial  stone-paper,  etc.,  it  is  necessary  so  to  treat  all 
the  parts  of  the  plate  that  are  to  remain  white  that  they  attain  an 
especial  resistance  to  color,  and  thus  change  their  natures,  so  to  speak. 

That  this  is  possible  under  certain  circumstances  and  with  the  proper 
means,  with  all  bodies  belonging  to  this  class,  I  have  proved  by  many 
experiments,  and  I  shall  describe  the  methods  in  this  book. 

Thus  the  new  process  is  not  to  be  used  only  on  limestone,  but  is  appli- 
cable to  metal,  etc. ;  and  stone-printing  or  lithography  is  to  be  considered 
only  as  a  branch  of  general  chemical  printing.  However,  as  this  book  is 
to  teach  mainly  lithography,  I  will  occupy  myself  chiefly  with  it. 

Among  the  bodies  available  for  chemical  printing,  limestone  maintains 
an  eminent  place.  Not  only  has  it  an  especial  property  of  uniting  with 
fats,  —  sucking  them  in  and  holding  them,  —  but  it  has,  also,  the  same 
propensity  for  taking  all  fluids  that  repel  fats.  Indeed,  its  surface  unites 
so  thoroughly  with  many  of  the  latter  that  it  forms  a  chemical  union 
with  them,  becoming  practically  impenetrable  for  oil  colors  and  remaining 
constant  thereafter  in  repelling  them  so  that  they  cannot  adhere  per- 


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fectly.  Therefore  when  a  plate  thus  prepared  is  dry  and  covered  entirely 
with  oil  color,  it  still  remains  an  easy  matter  to  wash  it  completely,  using 
merely  water  for  the  purpose. 

This  good  property,  combined  with  the  low  cost  and  the  ease  of  ob- 
taining the  stone  in  Bavaria ;  then  the  advantage  that  it  is  easily  polished 
and  prepared ;  the  further  advantage  that  a  stone  of  medium  thickness 
can  be  ground  as  often  as  a  hundred  times  and  utilized  for  new  work — 
all  these  properties  combined  made  me  willing  to  overlook  a  few  faults, 
such  as  their  weight,  great  volume,  frequent  unevenness  of  quality,  and 
lastly  the  occasional  danger  of  cracking.  Thus  I  came  to  use  these  stones 
as  the  principal  means  for  making  my  countless  experiments,  whose 
happy  result  has  been  to  elevate  stone-printing  to  an  art  by  itself. 

Having  stated  the  process  and  the  character  of  this  form  of  printing, 
it  remains  only  to  say  a  few  words  about  its  value. 

With  every  new  invention  there  arises  the  question  if  it  is  useful,  and 
if  so,  in  how  far,  for  science,  arts,  and  industry.  Therefore  all  who  have 
no  sufficient  knowledge  of  lithography,  will  ask  justly:  What  is  its  value? 
What  advantages  does  it  give  that  are  not  to  be  found  in  any  other  forms 
of  printing? 

To  answer  this,  let  me  say  the  following  merely  in  advance  till  later 
descriptions  of  the  various  processes  will  convince  in  themselves. 

It  is  the  nature  of  earthly  being  and  of  human  imperfection  that  rarely 
is  anything  found  that  combines  in  itself  everything  to  be  wished  for  and 
required.  So  it  maybe  said  of  stone-printing  that  it  makes  neither  book- 
printing  nor  copper-plate  printing  entirely  superfluous.  It  is  possible 
that  in  the  future,  by  perfecting  the  presses,  lithography  may  equal 
book-printing  in  point  of  speed,  as  it  does  not  now;  but  the  convenience 
of  the  latter,  enabling  the  printer,  by  merely  setting  cast  characters  side 
by  side,  to  do  with  speed,  accuracy,  and  symmetry  what  the  writer  can 
hardly  do  with  all  his  skill  and  industry,  gives  book-printing  its  own 
eminent  value.  When,  however,  we  come  to  many  things  produced 
hitherto  by  book-printing,  such  as  statistical  tables,  letters,  circulars, 
letters  of  exchange,  bills  of  lading,  visiting-cards  and  addresses,  and 


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other  similar  work,  we  find  that  these  can  be  produced  more  conven- 
iently, more  readily,  more  cheaply,  and  faster  and  handsomer  with 
lithography. 

As  to  copper-printing:  in  the  future,  as  lithography  extends,  there 
probably  will  remain  an  advantage  with  the  copper  in  the  case  of  only 
two  styles,  the  engraving  done  with  the  engraving  needle,  and  the  etch- 
ing, the  latter  being  worked  up  with  the  graver  and  the  cold  needle. 
In  this  respect,  however,  the  skill  of  the  artist  must  be  taken  into  account, 
for  a  good  man  can  produce  better  work  on  stone,  even  in  those  two  styles, 
than  a  less  skillful  man  can  produce  on  copper.  We  can  declare  the  same 
of  the  stipple  style  in  copper,  when  done  in  the  style  of  Herr  Bartolozzi, 
or  even  like  the  very  foremost  of  the  copper  engravers  in  this  style,  Herr 
John  of  Vienna. 

All  other  methods  (and  even  these  three  if  done  with  less  care  or  skill 
on  copper)  must  yield  place  to  a  good  design  on  stone ;  especially  if  one 
takes  into  account  the  ease  of  execution,  the  lesser  need  for  skill,  the 
greater  speed  of  printing,  and  the  almost  countless  impressions  that  are 
possible. 

For  instance,  printing  music  from  the  stone  has  a  decided  advantage 
over  zinc  plates,  both  because  of  smaller  cost  and  greater  beauty.  It  is 
easier  to  produce  all  kinds  of  script  on  stone,  both  with  fatty  inks  and 
with  the  engraving  needle.  Therefore  lithography  serves  excellently  for 
charts  and  similar  work,  which  can  be  done  at  least  three  times  faster  on 
stone  than  on  copper. 

If  copper-printing  is  to  reach  a  high  degree  of  perfection,  the  printing 
itself  must  be  done  by  very  excellent  workmen.  Indeed,  some  persons 
allege  that  the  very  best  German  copper-plate  printers  do  not  yet  equal 
the  Parisians.  Printing  from  stone  is  not  so  difficult,  and  only  a  few  par- 
ticular methods  demand  especial  care  or  unusual  knowledge.  Because 
of  the  greater  ease  of  inking,  the  speed  of  stone-printing  may  be  assumed 
to  be  at  least  five  times  as  great,  often  ten  times,  and  especially  so  when 
large  plates  are  to  be  printed.  Besides,  it  is  much  easier  to  make  correc- 
tions on  stone  than  on  copper  and  zinc. 


100     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

From  all  this  it  appears  that  lithography  makes  it  much  easier  to  write 
and  design  and  then  to  print  swiftly  and  produce  any  desired  number  of 
impressions,  of  all  those  works  that  heretofore  could  be  produced  only 
on  copper  or  zinc,  providing  they  do  not  demand  the  very  greatest  degree 
of  delicacy,  strength,  and  sharpness  obtainable  with  copper ;  in  a  word, 
so  long  as  it  is  not  vital  to  attain  the  utmost  possible  artistic  beauty. 
Further,  most  of  these  works  done  on  stone,  by  only  average  artists  and 
printers,  usually  are  more  beautiful  than  if  they  had  been  done  by  the 
same  men  in  copper  or  zinc. 

This  property  alone  gives  lithography  a  preeminent  value,  the  more  so 
as  no  great  expense  is  incurred  in  establishing  a  plant.  But  in  addition 
to  this,  there  are  several  art  methods  peculiar  to  it,  which  cannot  be  imi- 
tated by  book-printing  or  copper-print,  and  which  make  it  possible  for 
almost  every  writer  or  artist  to  manifold  his  works  without  any  especial 
skill. 

I  will  mention  now  only  the  crayon  process,  which  enables  every  artist 
or  painter  to  make  several  thousand  impressions  of  his  original  drawings; 
also  the  transfer  method,  by  means  of  which  all  that  is  written  or  drawn 
with  fatty  ink  on  ordinary  paper  can  be  transferred  to  the  stone,  giving 
countless  faithful  impressions.  This  latter  process  is  particularly  useful 
for  government  bureaus,  and  is  being  used  already  with  great  profit. 

All  this  I  believe  that  I  can  claim  for  lithography  with  fullest  confi- 
dence, and  I  hope  that  everybody  who  becomes  sufficiently  conversant 
with  it  will  share  my  belief.  Thus,  besides  the  properties  of  the  art,  we 
have  stated  its  uses,  and  I  proceed  to  the  real  instructions,  through  which 
I  hope  to  make  good  artists  and  printers  on  stone. 


PART  I 

GENERAL  PROVISIONS 

CHAPTER  I 
OF  THE  STONES 


THE  stone  that  has  been  used  exclusively  hitherto  in  Munich  for 
printing  is  a  stratified  limestone,  found  in  the  territory  from 
Dietfurt  to  Pappenheim,  and  along  the  Danube  down  to  Kellheim; 
hence  the  name  Kellheimer  plates,  presumably  because  in  past  times 
the  stone  was  quarried  there  first,  or  else  found  in  its  best  quality.  Now 
the  Kellheimer  quarry  is  exhausted,  and  the  trade  in  the  stones  has 
transferred  itself  to  Solenhofen,  a  village  in  the  judicial  district  of  Mann- 
heim, three  hours  distant  from  Neuberg-on-the-Danube.  All  the  inhab- 
itants of  Solenhofen  are  quarrymen,  and  the  entire  surrounding  country 
seems  to  have  a  surplus  of  the  stone,  so  that  even  with  the  greatest  de- 
mand no  scarcity  is  to  be  feared  for  centuries. 

When  the  upper  layer  of  earth  is  removed  to  the  depth  of  six  to  ten  feet 
in  Solenhofen,  the  stones  are  found  in  strata  lying  horizontally  on  each 
other.  First  come  strata  of  brittle  stone,  which  often  are  composed  of 
hundreds  of  plates  as  thin  as  paper.  With  proper  care,  each  plate  can  be 
loosened  and  lifted  whole.  These  layers  are  useless,  being  too  brittle,  and 
yet  being  too  firm  and  not  white  enough  to  permit  their  possible  use  as 
chalk. 

The  Solenhofen  stone  consists  chemically  mostly  of  lime  earth  and  car- 
bonate. It  is  ahnost  wholly  soluble  in  nitric  and  other  acids,  the  carbon- 
ate being  liberated  in  gaseous  form  and  disappearing.  Since  the  various 
kinds  of  marble  have  almost  the  same  component  parts,  one  might  sup- 


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pose  that  marble  should  be  available  for  lithography.  But  the  many 
dark,  uneven  colors  of  marble  and  chiefly  the  many  cracks  and  veins 
make  considerable  difficulty.  However,  I  have  found  many  evenly  col- 
ored greenish,  gray,  bluish,  and  brownish  Bavarian  and  Tyrolean  marbles 
very  useful  for  some  methods,  especially  because  of  their  superior  hard- 
ness. Still,  the  Solenhofen  stone  will  retain  the  advantage  because  of  its 
light  color  and  its  greater  cheapness. 

The  white  Parian  or  Carrara  marble  is  still  lighter  in  color,  to  be  sure, 
and  really  is  rather  useful  for  pen  and  crayon  work.  But  though  in  part 
it  is  harder,  on  the  whole  it  is  much  more  porous  and  not  so  finely  grained 
as  the  Solenhofen  stone,  and  therefore  not  at  all  available  for  the  intaglio 
method. 

Since  lithography  began  to  arouse  general  interest,  there  have  been 
attempts  to  find  a  stone  similar  to  the  Solenhofen,  and  there  has  been 
some  fair  success  in  France,  Italy,  England,  and  lately  in  the  Kingdom  of 
Prussia.  With  the  enormous  masses  of  limestone  which  cover  the  surface 
of  the  earth,  it  is  not  unlikely  that  this  stone  will  be  found  in  many  places, 
either  in  layers  of  plates  one,  two ,  or  more  inches  thick,  or  in  great  blocks 
which  can  be  cut  into  plates. 

In  the  Solenhofen  stones  one  layer  is  not  as  good  as  another,  and  even 
in  the  same  layer  there  may  be  a  decided  difference.  Therefore,  if  one 
would  produce  perfectly  beautiful  work,  it  is  necessary  to  obtain  selected 
and  perfect  stones.  This  should  be  stipulated  beforehand  with  the  quar- 
rymen,  who  now  know  pretty  well  how  the  best  stones  should  be  con- 
stituted. 

A  good  stone  must  have  the  following  properties:  — 

(i)  The  proper  thickness.  Thickness  must  be  proportionate  to  the  size. 
Smaller  plates  will  resist  the  pressure  of  printing  even  if  they  are  not  so 
thick  as  the  larger  ones  must  be.  But  it  is  best  to  buy  no  stone  less  than 
one  and  one  half  or  more  than  three  and  one  half  inches  thick,  because 
the  thinner  ones  will  not  bear  frequent  grinding  and  the  thicker  ones  are 
too  heavy  and  inconvenient,  besides  taking  up  too  much  room.  The  best 
thickness  of  a  stone  is  two  to  two  and  one  half  inches. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     103 

(2)  Good  mass.  There  are  soft  and  hard  stones.  Sometimes  the  same 
stone  is  hard  above  and  soft  underneath,  or  the  reverse.  Often,  also,  a 
stone  may  consist  of  several  thin  and  unequal  layers.  In  the  latter  case, 
if  the  union  is  good  and  the  layers  are  not  easily  separated,  it  will  make 
no  difference,  so  long  as  the  stone  is  good  in  other  respects.  On  the  whole, 
however,  it  may  be  assumed  that  the  harder  stones  are  the  best  for  all 
methods,  so  long  as  theirmass  is  entirely  uniform  and  they  are  not  marred, 
as  is  the  case  with  many,  with  white  dots  and  patches.  Then,  to  be  sure, 
they  are  not  worth  much  for  any  process,  and  at  best  can  be  used  only  for 
pen  designs  or  for  such  of  the  intaglio  processes  where  the  lines  need  no 
particular  sharpness.  Such  stones,  generally  gray,  very  hard,  with  softer, 
somewhat  lighter  patches  or  specks,  are  very  hard  to  grind  evenly  because 
the  softer  parts  are  most  powerfully  attacked  by  the  grinding  material 
and  become  depressed.  This  produces  the  following  defects:  — 

{a)  In  pen  work,  the  pen  will  catch  often,  whenever  it  comes  to  such 
a  place.  This,  however,  is  not  so  important:  but 

{b)  In  the  crayon  method  there  will  be  defects  and  lights  in  the  shad- 
ings on  the  softer  places,  which  are  very  hard  to  correct. 

(c)  In  the  etched  or  engraved  methods,  the  needle  will  sink  in  much 
deeper  when  it  passes  over  such  softer  spots,  making  a  deeper  and  broader 
line  which  injures  the  clearness  of  the  drawing.  In  etching,  also,  the  softer 
places  are  more  affected  by  the  acid ;  and  it  is  better,  therefore,  to  use  a 
soft  stone  whose  entire  surface  is  uniform,  than  to  have  a  stone  that  is 
hard  but  uneven. 

A  very  soft  stone  cracks  easily  in  the  press,  unless  it  consists  of  several 
layers,  the  lower  of  which  are  hard.  But  it  is  easier  to  engrave,  and  as  a 
rule  gives  blacker  impressions,  because  it  sucks  more  color  in,  and  holds 
it  because  of  its  greater  porosity.  Printing,  however,  is  somewhat  more 
difficult,  because  these  stones  take  dirt  readily;  nor  is  it  possible  to  get  so 
many  impressions.  They  are  not  useful  for  crayon  work  because  the 
finest  shadings  are  too  easily  etched  away;  and  pen  work  is  difficult  on 
them,  because  the  steel  pen  easily  cuts  into  the  stone,  fills  its  point  with 
fine  dust,  and  thus  gives  no  ink  flow.  This  softest  stone  in  Solenhofen 


104     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

generally  looks  yellow,  or  is  marbled  with  red  and  white  or  has  many 
yellow  veins. 

Even  those  stones  whose  uniformity,  thickness,  and  hardness  make 
them  best  for  all  methods,  often  have  defects,  such  as  so-called  glass 
spots  or  tiny,  sometimes  invisible  holes,  broad  veins  and  cracks.  All  these 
must  be  avoided  when  selecting  stone.  Very  small  deep  veins,  which 
often  are  fine  as  hairs,  yellowish  and  grayish  spots,  impressions  of  fossil 
plants  and  fishes,  etc.,  are  not  harmful.  It  is  rare  to  find  a  stone  as  large 
as  a  sheet  of  note-paper  that  is  entirely  free  from  these  little  defects. 

(3)  The  form  of  the  stones  also  is  to  be  considered,  and  must  be 
selected  according  to  need.  To  be  sure,  a  small  design  can  be  drawn  on  a 
large  stone;  but  apart  from  the  inconvenience,  the  construction  of  the 
press  demands  that  the  stone  be  not  much  larger  than  the  drawing.  How- 
ever, at  the  end  where  the  impression  begins  and  stops,  there  must  be  at 
least  an  inch  margin  to  give  sufficient  room  for  the  roller  to  take  hold,  as 
will  be  explained  more  particularly  later. 

When  one  has  to  print  small  things  like  visiting-cards,  etc.,  it  will  not 
be  profitable  to  use  large  stones,  especially  if  they  are  to  be  saved  for 
future  use.  Small  stones  of  the  size  of  an  octavo  sheet  are  better.  There- 
fore it  will  be  wise  to  have  stones  cut  to  various  sizes  in  the  beginning. 
It  would  be  well  also  that  one  of  the  printers,  or  the  polisher,  strive  to 
attain  skill  in  cutting  stones  to  size.  Sometimes  polishing  discloses  de- 
fects in  a  stone,  making  it  useless  for  a  design  of  any  size.  But  it  is 
possible  to  cut  it  up  into  many  small  ones  that  are  perfect.  Sometimes  a 
stone  cracks  under  the  press  or  breaks  through  accident.  Skill  in  cutting 
will  enable  one  to  make  small  and  good  stones  out  of  the  pieces. 

It  is  essential  for  good  work  in  the  press  that  the  stones  be  cut  very 
true.  The  stones  that  are  used  for  flooring  in  churches,  etc.,  usually  are 
cut  so  that  the  upper  face  is  larger  than  the  lower.  This  is  done  to  make 
them  set  better  in  the  mortar  and  to  enable  the  stone-cutters  to  fit  them 
closely  together  on  the  top.  But  this  must  not  be  done  with  stones  for 
printing,  because  such  stones  could  not  be  tightened  properly  in  the 
press  and  would  lift  during  the  printing.    Printing-stones  must  be  cut 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     105 

absolutely  true  vertically.  Indeed,  in  work  where  several  plates  are  to 
be  used  to  make  one  complete  impression,  and  where  steel  guide-points 
in  the  frame  are  used  instead  of  laying  the  paper  on  the  plate,  it  is  bene- 
ficial to  cut  the  stones  conically,  so  that  the  base  is  one  fourth  inch  greater 
than  the  top.  The  plate  can  be  tightened  better  and  is  less  likely  to  be 
moved  from  its  place  during  the  impressions. 

Despite  their  hardness  the  stones  are  brittle,  and  a  single  light  but 
sudden  blow  with  any  hard  body,  such  as  a  steel  tool,  may  cause  a  crack 
in  the  thickest  stone.  It  is  necessary  to  exercise  great  care  to  avoid  all 
shocks. 

This  property  of  the  stone  is  used  in  Solenhofen  to  cut  the  stones 
according  to  desire.  A  small  hammer  of  hard  steel,  weighing  scarcely 
two  ounces,  is  used.  Its  end  is  somewhat  like  a  stone-chisel,  but  not 
nearly  so  sharp.  With  this  hammer,  which  is  set  on  a  thin  handle  t^AO  or 
three  feet  long,  the  workman  strikes  light  but  very  swift  blows  along 
the  line  of  desired  cleavage,  each  tap  being  about  an  inch  from  the  pre- 
ceding one.  The  stone  is  so  laid  that  its  greater  part  is  free,  resting  on 
nothing.  This  light  operation  is  sufficient  to  cleave  the  largest  stones. 

The  cleavage  is  not  always  uniform  and  true.  Therefore  the  stone 
usually  is  finished  with  a  sharp  stone-chisel.  It  is  possible  also  to  divide 
a  stone  as  desired  by  supporting  it  at  both  ends  so  that  there  is  nothing 
under  the  part  to  be  spHt,  and  then  cutting  along  the  line  with  a  chisel 
of  hardened  steel,  not  too  sharp,  which  is  tapped  lightly  with  a  light  ham- 
mer. The  varying  sound  tells  at  once  when  the  stone  cracks,  and  then  a 
few  light  taps  with  the  hammer  on  the  other  side  suffice  to  separate  it. 
Before  one  attains  the  necessary  skill,  however,  he  will  smash  many  a 
stone.  Therefore  it  is  not  advisable  to  try  this  on  a  stone  that  has  a  design 
on  it,  for  a  single  incorrect  or  over-heavy  blow  often  will  split  the  stone 
in  the  wrong  direction.  Blows  that  are  too  light,  on  the  other  hand,  often 
make  it  almost  impossible  in  the  end  to  cause  a  cleavage  along  the  de- 
sired lines. 


io6    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

II 

POLISHING 

The  stone  plates  that  come  from  Solenhofen,  even  if  polished  according 
to  stipulations,  rarely  are  available  for  printing,  but  must  be  specially 
polished  by  one  who  understands  the  work  thoroughly. 

The  first  requisite  for  this  is  a  straightedge  of  iron  or  brass,  as  true  as 
possible.  This  ruler  must  be  laid  on  the  stone  in  various  directions,  and 
the  lithographer  must  note  all  parts  where  there  is  space  between  the 
straightedge  and  the  stone.  The  greater  the  space,  the  greater  the  uneven- 
ness  of  the  stone ;  and  those  that  show  especial  unevenness  should  be  set 
aside  from  those  that  have  little. 

When  this  has  been  done,  the  very  uneven  stones  must  be  ground  with 
a  coarse  sandstone  and  plenty  of  water  applied  to  the  elevated  places  till 
the  straightedge  can  be  applied  in  all  directions  without  showing  any 
material  interstices.  Then  these  ground  stones  may  be  placed  with  the 
others  that  were  fairly  even  in  the  beginning. 

Now  we  take  one  of  these  stones,  and  lay  it  on  a  strong,  firm  table,  the 
best  being  one  to  be  described  later.  Finely  grained  sand  is  sprinkled 
over  its  surface.  In  the  absence  of  sand,  a  substitute  can  be  made  by 
powdering  a  common  sandstone  of  the  kind  used  for  coarse  grindstones. 
A  spoonful  of  water  is  poured  over  this.  A  little  soap  may  be  mixed  with 
the  sand.  It  facilitates  the  grinding  and  makes  the  sand  take  hold  of  the 
stone  better.  Now  another  stone  is  laid  on  the  first  one,  and  is  moved 
back  and  forth  continually  in  all  directions.  The  sand  and  water  must 
be  renewed  often.  Thus  both  stones,  the  upper  and  lower,  will  be  ground 
simultaneously,  and  very  evenly  and  true,  if  the  work  is  done  right. 

One  must  take  care  never  to  draw  the  upper  stone  far  beyond  the  lower 
one,  because  that  would  throw  the  centre  of  gravity  of  the  upper  plate 
too  near  its  ends,  as  a  result  of  which  the  upper  plate  would  become  con- 
cave and  the  lower  plate  convex.  To  avoid  this  defect,  the  upper  plate 
should  be  moved  around  only  in  small  circles.  It  is  good  also  to  change 
the  plates  around  frequently,  so  that  the  upper  shall  be  the  lower.  An- 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     107 

other  good  plan  is  not  to  use  two  stones  of  equal  size,  but  to  take  for  the 
upper  stone  one  only  half  as  large  as  the  lower.  It  is  necessary  also  that 
the  straightedge  be  applied  frequently.  The  stone  must  always  be 
cleansed  thoroughly  before  this  test. 

Once  one  has  the  proper  experience,  it  is  possible  to  tell  by  mere  touch 
if  the  plates  have  been  sufficiently  ground.  So  long  as  they  still  have  un- 
even spots,  a  certain  resistance  is  noticeable,  so  strongly  sometimes  that 
it  is  impossible  to  move  the  upper  plate  further  without  hfting  it  and 
sprinkling  new  sand.  Sometimes  this  friction  is  so  great  that  manual 
strength  does  not  suffice  to  separate  the  stones,  especially  if  they  happen 
to  dry.  If  tools  are  used  to  separate  them,  it  happens  often  that  pieces 
are  torn  from  the  stones,  because  they  adhere  so  mightily.  In  this  case  a 
very  simple  and  convenient  remedy  is  the  best.  An  ordinary  table-knife 
is  inserted  gently  and  then  tapped  very  lightly,  when  the  stones  will 
separate  at  once. 

Whenever  sand  is  applied,  water  must  be  applied  also,  but  not  too 
much,  as  in  that  case  it  would  only  wash  away  the  sand.  Here,  too,  prac- 
tice must  teach  the  exact  proportions. 

From  the  stone-cutter's  work,  as  well  as  from  the  primary  grinding 
with  sandstone,  the  plates  will  have  visible  furrows  and  scratches  made 
by  the  coarser  grains  of  sand.  Under  the  polishing  all  these  disappear  bit 
by  bit,  and  there  appears  a  fine  grain,  consisting  entirely  of  fine  dots; 
and  diis  is  the  finer  in  proportion  as  the  sand  is  crushed  by  the  process  of 
polishing  and  also  according  as  less  fresh  sand  has  been  used. 

When  the  marks  of  the  sand  have  vanished  completely,  it  is  fairly  cer- 
tain that  the  stones  are  polished  sufficiently.  To  make  sure,  the  straight- 
edge can  be  applied  again.  It  must  not  be  imagined,  however,  that  it  is 
necessary  or  possible  to  polish  a  plate  so  perfectly  that  there  will  be  abso- 
lutely no  spaces  between  any  part  of  its  surface  and  the  straightedge.  A 
perfect  and  mathematically  level  plane  surface  is  hardly  likely  ever  to  be 
produced.  If  the  stone  is  almost  level,  and  the  unevennesses  do  not 
exceed  the  thickness  of  letter-paper,  it  is  quite  sufficient. 

Although  this  sort  of  polishing,  with  two  plates  at  once,  is  not  used 


io8     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

in  all  lithographies,  some  preferring  to  polish  with  small  pieces  of  sand- 
stone, I  give  it  here  as  the  best,  because  it  demands  little  skill  and  is 
quicker,  so  that  one  can  grind  off  four  stones  in  the  time  required  for  one 
under  other  methods. 

In  this  matter  of  smoothness  of  the  stone  it  is  impossible  to  be  too  care- 
ful. The  beauty  of  the  imprint  depends  upon  it.  Errors  in  the  polishing 
cause  great  trouble  afterward.  Therefore  the  manager  of  a  lithography 
must  pay  close  attention  to  this  work.  In  the  Lithographic  Institute  in 
Berlin  the  rule  has  been  adopted  that  no  engraver  shall  accept  a  plate 
that  he  has  not  found  thoroughly  good,  under  penalty  of  reimbursing 
the  printers  for  all  extra  trouble  and  work. 

This  first  polishing,  however,  is  only  the  general  preparation  of  the 
stone.  Afterward  they  must  be  polished  and  prepared  especially  for  each 
particular  method,  as  will  be  explained  in  the  proper  place. 

Ill 

SORTING  AND  STORING 

When  the  plates  have  been  polished,  they  are  cleansed  with  water  and 
sorted  for  their  various  uses.  Now  it  is  easier  to  see  just  what  quality 
the  stones  have,  their  defects,  and  consequently,  what  work  they  are  best 
for.  Those  not  uniform  are  best  for  coarse  pen  work.  Those  of  uneven 
coloring,  but  hard  and  thick  mass,  can  be  used  for  the  finer  pen  draw- 
ings, for  etching  and  engraving,  or  for  transfer  work.  For  crayon  work  the 
clearest  and  most  evenly  colored  stones  of  extreme  hardness  are  to  be 
selected. 

They  can  be  stored  anywhere  that  is  not  too  damp  and  not  too  much 
exposed  to  winter  cold.  Dry  cold  does  not  hurt  them;  but  if  they  are  wet 
through  and  through  and  then  freeze,  they  will  crack.  In  constant 
dampness,  too,  saltpetre  and  other  salts  enter  them  and  they  crumble. 
In  clean  water  they  do  not  undergo  any  changes. 

I  will  describe  the  storage  of  etched  and  designed  stones  later. 

If  the  stones  are  to  be  used  after  being  stored  in  any  damp  place,  they 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     109 

should  be  kept  for  several  days  in  a  temperate  and  dry  place  till  they 
have  dried  thoroughly,  as  otherwise  they  are  not  easy  to  work  in  any 
style.  This  is  not  necessary  if  their  place  of  storage  has  been  perfectly 
dry. 

CHAPTER   II 
OF  INK,  CRAYON,  ETCHING,   AND  COLOR 


CHEMICAL  INK 

The  first  and  most  necessary  material  in  a  stone  printery  is  the  so- 
called  chemical  ink,  which  would  better  be  named  fatty  or  alkaline  ink, 
since  it  is  a  mixture  of  fatty  and  resinous  materials  with  alkali.  It  is 
used  partly  to  write  or  draw  directly  on  the  stone,  partly  to  cover  the 
stone  as  with  an  etching  surface,  and  partly  to  transfer  to  the  stone 
from  paper. 

The  purpose  of  this  ink  is,  first,  to  cause  a  mass  of  oily,  fatty  substances 
to  soak  into  the  pores  of  the  stone  and  also  make  certain  portions  of  its 
surface  fatty;  and  secondly,  to  resist  acids  according  to  requirement  in 
such  degree  that  the  stone  shall  remain  fat  where  needed,  that  thus  the 
design,  applied  with  this  ink,  shall  be  left  untouched  by  acid. 

I  have  remarked  before  that  countless  different  mixtures  can  be  made, 
most  of  which  fulfill  the  purpose.  But  there  enters  the  consideration  that 
it  must  be  an  ink  easy  to  use,  that  handsome  work  may  be  done  by  the 
artists  with  perfect  ease. 

Various  mixtures  answer  this  purpose  very  well,  and  I  have  found 
sometimes  that  men  could  work  better  with  mixtures  made  by  themselves 
than  they  could  with  those  that  I  used  for  my  own  work.  Perhaps  this 
was  a  matter  of  imagination,  or  the  real  reason  lay  in  the  pen-cutting,  it 
being  well  known  that  one  man  can  use  a  pen  that  is  absolutely  worthless 
for  another. 

I  myself  have  tested  the  values  of  some  mixtures  so  thoroughly  that  I 


no     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

can  declare  almost  positively  that  it  will  not  be  easy  to  find  better  ones 
for  any  purposes.  I  will  describe  these  fully. 

First  of  all,  stone-ink  is  divided  into  two  great  classes.  One  is  thicker, 
being  used  for  drawing  on  stone.  The  other  is  more  fluid,  being  used  for 
transfers. 

The  following  mixtures  of  the  first  kind  are  the  best :  — 


(l)   White  Wax 

8  parts 

Soap 

2  parts 

Lampblack 

I  part 

This  ink  does  not  really  serve  for  writing  or  drawing  on  the  stone,  but 
is  used  mostly  for  coating  those  places  that  are  to  be  protected  from  the 
etching  fluid.  If  this  ink  is  needed  in  a  thickened  form,  the  wax  should 
be  heated  in  an  iron  pan  till  it  burns  and  the  combustion  should  continue 
till  one  half  of  it  is  consumed.  The  longer  it  burns,  the  harder  will  be  the 
remnant. 


(2)  White  Wax 

12  parts 

Tallow  (Ox  Fats) 

4  parts 

Soap 

■  4  parts 

Lampblack 

I  part 

(3)  Wax 

12  parts 

Shellac 

4  parts 

Soap 

4  parts 

Lampblack 

I  part 

(4)  Tallow 

8  parts 

Shellac 

8  parts 

Soap 

4  parts 

Lampblack 

I  part 

(S)  Wax 

8  parts 

Shellac 

4  parts 

Mastic 

4  parts 

Soap 

4  parts 

Lampblack 

I  part 

(6)  Wax 

8  parts 

Tallow 

4  parts 

TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     in 

Shellac  4  parts 

Soap  4  parts 

Lampblack  i  part 

(7)  Wax  and  Gum  quajak  13  parts 
Tallow  4  parts 
Soap  4  parts 
Lampblack  i  part 

The  wax  and  gum  are  melted  in  equal  proportions,  the  undis- 
solved portion  is  discarded  and  of  the  mixture  twelve  parts  is 
used  as  above. 

(8)  Wax  6  parts 
Shellac  4  parts 
Tallow  2  parts 
Mastic  3  parts 
Venetian  turpentine  i  part 
Soap  4  parts 
Lampblack  i  part 

There  is  no  important  difference  between  the  inks  in  the  seven  last 
formulas.  Those  that  contain  shellac  remain  fluid  a  little  longer  but  are 
harder  to  prepare.  It  is  not  necessary  to  be  painfully  minute  about  the 
proportions  of  the  various  materials,  providing  the  proportions  of  soap 
and  lampblack  be  correct.  The  soap  is  about  one  fifth  and  the  lampblack 
about  one  twentieth  part  of  the  whole.  If  too  much  soap  is  used,  the  ink 
will  dissolve  more  readily,  but  the  solution  will  become  slimy  more 
quickly.  Too  much  lampblack  would  make  the  ink  run. 

MAKING  THE  CHEMICAL  INK 

In  making  any  of  the  inks  mentioned,  first  divide  the  required  quantity 
of  soap  into  two  equal  parts.  Put  one  part  into  an  iron  pan  with  the 
other  substances,  and  heat  till  the  mass  begins  to  burn.  Let  it  burn  till 
almost  one  half  is  consumed.  Then  cover  the  pan  with  an  iron  lid,  or 
place  it  very  carefully  into  a  basin  of  water  to  extinguish  and  cool  the 
mixture. 


112     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

One  part  of  the  soap  is  mixed  in  at  once,  that  the  combustion  may 
make  it  mix  well  with  the  other  substances.  But  it  loses  some  of  its 
strength  and  sates  itself  with  carbonic  acid,  so  that  it  is  not  quite  so  power- 
ful as  before  to  attack  the  fats.  Therefore  a  second  part  is  added  after 
the  combustion.  Then  the  complete  mixture  is  heated  again,  but  only 
to  a  degree  sufficient  to  melt  the  soap. 

Now  take  up  a  bit  of  the  mass  with  a  clean  knife  and  see  if  it  is  easily 
soluble  in  river  or  rain  water.  If  the  soap  was  good  (something  not  always 
the  case),  the  quantity  named  in  the  formulas  always  suffices.  If  it  does 
not  contain  enough  alkali,  little  pieces  of  soap  must  be  added  till  the  mass 
is  soluble.  Then  the  lampblack  is  added  while  the  mass  is  being  stirred 
without  cessation. 

The  lampblack  must  be  of  the  finest  sort,  and  should  be  roasted  and 
burned  in  a  closed  vessel  until  it  ceases  to  give  ofi^  any  yellow  smoke. 

When  everything  has  been  stirred  till  the  mass  is  nearly  cold,  it  is 
kneaded  into  any  desired  shape,  sticks  being  tlie  best,  and  so  saved  for 
use. 

The  following  remarks  are  to  be  noted  especially:  — 

(i)  The  soap  is  to  be  the  ordinary  soap  made  from  ox  fat  and  lye.  In 
the  formulas  its  weight  is  calculated  in  fresh  form,  which,  of  course,  in- 
cludes considerable  water.   If  the  soap  is  very  dry,  less  must  be  used. 

Venetian  or  vegetable  oil  soap  is  not  so  good  because  the  ink  easily 
becomes  slimy  afterward  when  dissolved  in  water.  It  does  not  resist 
acids  so  well,  either.  If,  however,  the  other  kind  is  not  to  be  had,  or  to 
be  had  only  in  poor  quality,  the  Venetian  soap  will  do.  It  will  be  neces- 
sary merely  to  make  frequent  fresh  solutions  in  water  of  the  ink. 

(2)  Lampblack  is  not  the  only  substance  available  for  giving  color  to 
the  ink.  Vermilion,  red  chalk,  indigo,  blue  lake  of  logwood,  and  several 
other  colors  can  be  used,  so  long  as  they  do  not  consist  of  acids  or  other 
salts,  and  thus  have  properties  that  could  alter  the  nature  of  the  soap. 
The  finer  kinds  of  ordinary  lampblack  can  be  used  without  burning,  but 
then  a  part  of  the  soap  always  is  rendered  inactive,  because  the  lamp- 
black usually  contains  a  considerable  quantity  of  inflammable  wood  acid 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     113 

which  unites  with  the  alkali,  neutralizes  it,  and  thus  destroys  its  effec- 
tiveness against  fats.  Therefore,  if  it  is  not  roasted  beforehand,  it  may  be 
necessary  to  mix  more  soap  with  the  ink  after  it  is  made,  and  this  does  not 
completely  remedy  the  trouble.  Lampblack  can  be  purified  by  rubbing 
down  with  strong  lye  and  then  boiling  in  sufficient  water  till  no  trace  of 
alkali  remains,  if  roasting  and  burning  be  undesirable  for  any  reason. 

Better  even  than  this  purified  lampblack  is  one  that  one  makes  for 
himself  from  ox  or  other  animal  fat,  from  wax,  or  better  still,  from  a 
mixture  of  ox  fat  and  resin.  The  fat  is  melted  and  poured  into  an  earthen 
lamp  similar  to  those  used  for  city  lighting,  with  a  cotton  wick.  The 
lamp  is  lit  and  placed  under  a  plate  of  iron  or  brass,  so  that  the  smoke 
must  settle  on  it.  The  plate  must  be  close  to  the  flame.  The  soot  is 
scraped  off  from  time  to  time  and  dropped  into  a  glass,  which  is  kept 
covered.  This  process  continues,  the  lamp  being  refilled  till  one  has  the 
desired  quantity.  This  soot  is  very  fine  and  bland,  and  so  good  that  one 
can  do  more  with  an  ounce  of  it  than  with  three  ounces  of  the  ordinary 
kind.  The  ink  made  from  it  is  extraordinarily  fine  and  good. 

It  is  to  be  noted  in  conclusion  that  the  more  soot  is  used,  the  blacker 
will  be  the  ink,  but  the  coarser  will  be  the  work,  because  the  ink  will  have 
the  tendency  to  spread.  The  less  soot  is  used,  the  finer  will  be  the  work; 
but  it  is  not  easy  then  to  see  what  one  is  doing  or  to  judge  if  the  design  is 
strong  enough.  The  quantities  given  in  the  formulas  appear  to  me  to  be 
the  best,  especially  if  the  self-manufactured  soot  is  used. 

(3)  To  dissolve  the  ink,  rain  water  or  pure  soft  river  water  is  best. 
The  rain  water  must  not  be  very  old  or  stale,  otherwise  the  solution  will 
get  slimy. 

(4)  The  severe  combustion  is  not  vital  for  making  the  ink,  but  helps 
very  much  in  making  it  easy  to  use. 

(5)  When  shellac  is  part  of  the  mixture,  it  is  vital  to  burn  the  mass 
well,  as  only  thus  will  shellac  dissolve  properly. 

Shellac,  which  is  made  in  China  and  East  India  from  an  insect  belong- 
ing to  the  bee  family,  will  melt  under  moderate  heat,  but  will  not  dissolve 
in  any  animal  fat  or  oil  unless  it  has  previously  lost  its  inherent  acid, 


114     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

which  occurs  only  under  combustion.  If  shellac  is  melted  with  oil  or  fat, 
it  covers  the  bottom  of  the  vessel  in  the  beginning.  With  heat  increased 
till  it  causes  combustion,  it  begins  to  swell,  rises  to  the  surface,  and  at 
last  covers  the  surface  in  the  form  of  a  spongy  mass.  If  the  heat  still 
increases,  it  begins  to  dissolve  into  foam.  Then  it  is  time  to  remove  the 
mass  from  the  fire  and  to  cover  it  with  a  tight  lid,  that  die  flame  may  be 
extinguished. 

If  shellac  has  been  once  melted  and  has  hardened,  it  dissolves  only 
slowly  even  under  severe  combustion.  It  is  better,  therefore,  to  bring  the 
other  substances  to  combustion  first,  and  then  to  mix  the  shellac  in  small 
portions,  which  will  dissolve  much  more  readily  because  they  will  be 
attacked  by  the  great  heat  in  the  moment  of  melting  and  will  not  have 
time  to  swell  first  and  get  hard. 

As  soon  as  the  mass  has  cooled  a  little,  the  second  part  of  soap  is 
added,  and  the  whole  heated,  without  burning,  merely  enough  to  melt 
the  soap. 

(6)  None  of  these  mixtures  can  be  kept  well  any  length  of  time  in  fluid 
form,  that  is,  dissolved  in  water,  because  it  becomes  slimy  after  a  very 
few  days,  sometimes  sooner.  It  can  be  liquefied  again  by  mixing  with 
water,  but  not  without  aff^ecting  its  durability.  Therefore  the  ink  must 
be  stored  dry,  in  which  form  it  lasts  for  years  without  change.  When 
required,  a  small  quantity,  about  the  size  of  two  peas,  is  rubbed  down 
in  a  very  clean  small  earthen  or  porcelain  vessel,  such  as  a  saucer.  Those 
mixtures  that  contain  tallow  rub  the  easiest.  The  others,  containing 
harder  substances,  require  more  pressure.  The  ink  should  be  spread 
evenly  over  the  bottom  of  the  vessel.  Then  a  coffee-spoonful  of  rain  or 
other  soft  water  is  poured  in,  and  the  mixture  is  rubbed  with  the  finger 
till  the  solution  is  perfect.  Then  it  is  put  into  a  small,  very  clean  pot  of 
glass  or  porcelain  and  is  ready  for  use. 

(7)  A  great  deal  depends  on  the  proper  quantity  of  water.  A  good  ink 
must  be  completely  dissolved,  with  no  solid  particles  left.  It  should  be 
about  as  fluid  as  a  good,  fat  milk  or  vegetable  oil.  If  it  is  too  thick,  it 
makes  the  work  diflficult.  If  it  is  too  thin,  it  will  not  withstand  the  etch- 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     115 

ing  fluid.  A  few  experiments  will  teach  the  proper  proportions.  Even 
a  good  ink  will  make  poor  lines  if  it  is  laid  on  too  thinly  and  not  firmly 
enough.  This,  however,  is  due  to  the  artist's  lack  of  skill  or  to  defective 
pens,  of  which  I  will  treat  hereafter. 

With  this  quantity  of  ink  it  is  possible  to  work  for  a  whole  day.  Thus 
each  day  fresh  ink  can  be  mixed ;  and  it  is  to  be  noted  that  the  vessels 
must  be  cleansed  scrupulously  that  no  trace  of  the  previous  day's  ink  be 
left  in  them.  The  ink  will  dry  during  the  work,  and  as  soon  as  this  begins 
to  interfere  with  its  use,  one  or  two  drops  of  water  will  thin  it  again 
sufficiently. 

This  is  about  all  that  need  be  said  about  the  chemical  fatty  or  alkaline 
stone-ink  in  general.  Particular  remarks  will  be  found  in  the  description 
of  its  use  for  particular  methods. 

II 

HARD  BORAX  INK 

Besides  the  inks  described,  it  is  well  to  make  the  following  and  keep 
it  in  stock  for  uses  whose  great  value  will  be  explained  later. 

Shellac        4  parts 
Borax  i  part 

Water       16  parts 

Borax  and  shellac  must  be  put  into  a  clean  pot  filled  two  thirds  with 
water  and  boiled  for  an  hour.  As  the  water  boils  away  it  must  be  replaced. 
When  the  shellac  has  been  mostly  dissolved,  the  mass  is  removed  from 
the  fire,  cooled,  and  filtered  through  a  clean  cloth  to  separate  the  undis- 
solved portions  of  the  shellac. 

This  solution  can  be  kept  for  years  in  a  tightly  closed  glass.  To  color 
it,  a  portion  is  to  be  cooked  in  a  copper  or  iron  ladle  till  it  is  thick  as  honey. 
Fine  lampblack  or  vermilion  is  stirred  in  till  the  mass  is  thoroughly 
united.  Then  water  is  added,  and  the  composition  boiled  again  till  it  is  a 
perfect  solution.  This  black  or  red  ink  is  first-class  and  can  be  kept  well 
in  tightly  closed  glass. 


ii6     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

III 

FLUID  INK 

Herr  Andre,  in  Offenbach,  uses  an  ink  which  has  the  useful  property 
of  remaining  good  for  years  in  fluid  form.  I  do  not  find  it  so  good  for  the 
very  finest  work  as  those  I  have  described,  but  for  music  and  script  it 
is  excellent.  It  consists  of:  — 

12  parts  shellac 
4  parts  mastic 
I  part  pure  ox-fat  soap 
I  part  purified  crystallized  soda 
I  part  lampblack 

This  is  mixed  with  water  and  boiled  in  a  clean  vessel,  being  constantly 
stirred  till  it  is  dissolved.  Then  the  boiling  is  continued  till  the  water  has 
disappeared  almost  entirely.  Fresh  water  is  added  and  the  boiling  con- 
tinued till  everything  has  dissolved  anew.  Then  the  mixture  is  filtered 
through  a  cloth  and  kept  in  a  vessel  where  it  is  secure  against  dust.  If 
it  is  seen  on  cooling  that  it  is  too  thick  it  can  be  thinned  easily  with 
water.  Also,  when  it  dries  during  use  it  can  be  liquefied  by  adding  water, 
unless  dust  has  entered  it. 

IV 

TRANSFER  INK 

All  the  above-named  inks  are  intended  for  use  directly  on  stone.  If  it 
is  desired  to  write  on  paper  and  transfer  this  writing  to  the  stone,  those 
inks  mostly  prove  too  hard,  unless  one  would  use  warmed  stones,  as 
described  later.  This,  however,  makes  added  work:  therefore,  I  give  here 
the  recipe  for  an  ink  excellent  for  cold  transfers. 

Shellac  3  parts 

Wax  I  part 

Tallow  6  parts 

Mastic  5  parts 

Soap  4  parts 

Lampblack  l  part 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      117 

The  mode  of  preparation  is  exactly  like  that  of  the  rest.  The  mass  can 
be  kept  only  in  dried  form,  not  mixed  with  water.  The  evidence  that  this 
ink  is  good  for  transfer  work  is  that,  after  it  has  stood  for  some  days,  it 
still  manifests  stickiness  when  touched  with  the  finger.  If  the  ink  does 
not  transfer  well  to  the  stone  under  moderate  pressure,  it  is  too  hard,  and 
can  be  improved  by  mixing  in  a  little  butter  or  vegetable  oil,  but  it  is 
necessary  to  dissolve  the  whole  mass  again  over  the  fire.  If  the  design 
squashes  under  pressure,  the  ink  is  too  soft.  It  is  necessary  to  consider 
the  temperature  of  the  place  where  it  is  kept,  and  even  the  time  of  year, 
in  order  to  produce  the  proper  consistency  of  ink  for  the  best  transfer 
work. 

V 

HARD  ETCHING  GROUND 

Certain  methods  of  stone-printing  demand,  besides  the  ink,  a  fatty, 
acid-resisting  mass  to  coat  the  plates.  It  is  either  the  same  as  the  material 
used  by  copper-plate  etchers,  or,  at  least,  is  very  similar  to  it. 

Etching  Ground  for  stone  is  as  follows :  — 

Wax  12  parts 

Mastic  6  parts 

Asphalt  4  parts 

Resin  2  parts 

Tallow  I  part 

This  is  melted  in  an  iron  pan  over  a  fire  hot  enough  to  melt  the  asphalt 
perfectly.  Combustion  is  allowed  to  ensue  till  a  third  of  the  mixture  has 
been  consumed.  When  thoroughly  cooled,  it  may  be  shaped  in  any 
desired  form  and  saved  for  use. 

A  good  surface  is  made  also  by  common  wax,  boiled  and  burned  till 
almost  five  parts  of  it  have  been  consumed. 

VI 

SOFT  ETCHING  GROUND 

For  some  processes  there  is  needed  an  etching  ground  which  has  the 
property  of  not  coating  the  entire  surface,  permitting  the  etching  fluid  to 


ii8     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

penetrate  at  many  spots  uniformly,  or,  if  it  resists  the  etching  fluid,  still 
so  easily  affected  by  manipulation  that  it  will  admit  the  acid  according 
to  such  manipulation.  There  are  two  ways  to  make  it. 

(i)  Thick  linseed  oil  varnish  i  part 

Tallow  2  parts 

(2)  Wax  I  part 

Tallow  5  parts 

Linseed  oil  varnish  3  parts 

The  application  will  be  described  in  the  instructions  about  aquatints, 
etc. 

VII 

ACID  PROOF  INK 

So  I  name  a  color  which  has  the  property  of  resisting  acid  when  the 
stone  is  inked  with  it.  It  is  useful  in  many  cases,  and  even  necessary.  It 
is  well,  therefore,  to  make  a  supply  of  it. 

2  parts  thick  linseed  oil  varnish 
4  parts  tallow 
I  part  Venetian  turpentine 
I  part  wax 

All  must  be  well  melted,  mixed  with  four  parts  lampblack,  well  rubbed 
down  and  kept  in  a  closed  tin  vessel. 

VIII 

CRAYON 

Chemical  or  fatty  crayon  is  a  composition  intended  to  be  used  on  the 
stone  plate  in  dry  form  like  Spanish  or  Parisian  chalk.  The  inks  described 
previously  have  the  property  of  soaking  into  the  stone  and  making  it 
greasy  where  applied.  The  same  happens  if  they  are  applied  dry,  the 
degree  of  their  penetration  and  adherence  merely  being  less. 

The  mixtures  that  may  be  used  to  make  crayons  are  countless.  Wax 
and  soaps,  however,  are  better  than  resinous  materials.  Therefore  it  is 
likely  that  the  compositions  here  named  will  be  pretty  nearly  the  best. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     119 

(i)  Wax        4  parts 
Soap        6  parts 
.  Lampblack  2  parts,  roasted,  or  better  still, 
made  as  explained  before. 

The  wax  and  soap  are  melted  together.  The  lampblack  is  added  then. 
All  is  rubbed  down  fine  on  a  hot  plate,  and  then  placed  on  the  fire  again 
till  it  is  fluid  once  more.  Then  it  is  poured  on  a  stone  plate  coated  with 
a  little  oil,  so  that  it  forms  a  cake  of  about  one  eighth  inch  thickness. 
When  this  has  cooled  a  little,  it  is  cut  into  thin  pieces  and  put  away  till 
needed. 

(2)  Wax  8  parts 

Soap  4  parts 

Lampblack   2  parts 

Burn  the  wax  till  one  half  is  consumed,  then  melt  the  soap  with  it,  and 
treat  the  mixture  as  before. 

(3)  Wax  4  parts 
Spermaceti  4  parts 
Soap  4  parts 
Lampblack  2  parts 

The  first  three  materials  are  melted  together,  the  lampblack  is  added, 
and  then  the  whole  is  treated  as  before. 

(4)  Wax  8  parts 
Spermaceti  4  parts 
Soap  4  parts 
Lampblack  2  parts 

The  wax  is  to  be  half  burned  away,  then  the  spermaceti  and  soap  are 
to  be  melted  into  it,  and  the  whole  treated  as  the  other  formulas. 

(5)  Shellac  4  parts 
Wax  8  parts 
Soap  5  parts 
Lampblack  3  parts 

The  shellac  is  to  be  completely  dissolved  with  the  wax  by  means  of 
combustion  after  which  the  rest  of  the  treatment  is  the  same  as  before. 


120     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

(6)  Shellac  4  parts 
Wax  8  parts 
Tallow  2  parts 
Soap  5  parts 
Lampblack  3  parts 

The  same  treatment,  except  that  the  tallow  is  to  be  mixed  in  after  the 
shellac  has  dissolved.  This  crayon  is  a  little  softer  than  the  others.  The 
same  is  true  of  the  following  two. 

(7)  Wax  8  parts 
Tallow  4  parts 
Soap  6  parts 
Lampblack  3  parts 

Wax,  tallow,  and  soap  are  melted  together  and  burned  till  one  third 
of  the  mass  has  been  consumed.  Then  the  lampblack  is  added  and  the 
rest  of  the  process  is  as  before. 

(8)  Wax  2  parts 
Tallow  6  parts 
Mennig  2  parts 
Lampblack  2  parts 

Wax,  mennig,  and  lampblack  are  heated  and  constantly  stirred  till  the 
mennig  dissolves  in  froth  and  changes  from  red  to  brown.  Then  the 
lampblack  is  rubbed  in  thoroughly,  the  whole  warmed  again  properly 
and  shaped  into  sticks. 

These  are  the  best  compositions,  thoroughly  tested  by  me,  and  it  is 
very  good  to  make  a  stock  of  all  or  most  of  them.  In  the  case  of  the 
recipes  for  chemical  ink,  the  differences  are  not  great,  and  it  is  largely  a 
matter  of  taste  as  to  which  kind  one  may  use.  But  in  the  case  of  the 
crayons,  each  of  them  produces  a  different  grain  which  creates  a  particu- 
lar effect ;  so  that  by  using  various  kinds  of  crayon  one  will  gain  greater 
perfection  of  work,  or,  at  least,  find  execution  easier  than  with  only  one 
crayon.  Also,  they  are  in  proportion  to  the  greater  or  lesser  roughness 
of  the  stones;  and  the  darker  shadings  are  easier  to  produce  with  soft 
crayons  than  with  hard  ones,  while  the  hard  ones  are  best  for  fine  shading 
and  outlines. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      121 

The  lampblack  used  for  crayons  must  be  burned  out  first,  else  it  will 
develop  blisters,  which  is  the  case  also  if  the  composition  is  poured  on  the 
plates  too  hot. 

Crayon  that  contains  much  shellac  is  likely  to  soften  in  damp  air; 
therefore  it  should  be  kept  in  tightly  closed  vessels. 

IX 

CONCERNING  COLOR  FOR  PRINTING 

The  manufacture  of  printing-ink  or  color  is  very  difficult  and  danger- 
ous on  a  large  scale.  I  counsel  all  to  take  lessons  from  a  book  printer 
when  he  makes  it. 

The  varnish  must  be  prepared  in  the  open,  far  from  buildings,  because 
of  its  combustibility.  The  best  utensils  and  skilled  workmen  are  required, 
because  otherwise  terrible  accidents  may  occur,  and  even  life  be  lost 
through  explosion  of  the  copper  receptacle.  Whoever  does  not  require 
as  much  as  one  or  more  hundredweight  of  varnish  in  a  year,  would  better 
buy  it  from  printers  or  make  only  a  small  quantity,  one  or  two  pounds, 
and  in  an  open  vessel.  For  this  purpose  I  will  describe  the  process. 

One,  or  at  most  two  pounds  of  good  old  but  not  rancid  linseed  oil  are 
poured  into  a  clean  iron  pan  which  has  a  long,  strong  handle  and  is  so 
large  that  the  oil  takes  up  only  one  half  or,  better,  one  third  of  the  space. 
This  is  heated  over  a  good  fire  till  it  burns,  which  is  facilitated  by  applying 
flame  to  it.  Oil  that  is  too  new  has  much  water  and  other  impurities  that 
make  it  froth  and  run  over.  In  that  case  the  oil  must  be  poured  into  the 
pan  only  in  small  quantities,  when  one  must  take  great  care  to  avoid 
spattering.  As  soon  as  the  oil  burns,  the  pan  is  removed  from  the  fire  and 
placed  in  a  safe  spot.  If  it  is  hot  enough,  it  will  continue  to  burn.  It  must 
now  be  stirred  from  time  to  time  with  an  iron  rod.  Usually  the  flame 
increases  under  this  stirring,  but  sinks  again  immediately  at  its  cessation. 
So  long  as  it  does  this,  there  is  no  danger  that  the  flame  cannot  be  easily 
extinguished  if  need  be.  But  when  it  begins  to  continue  burning  with  a 
great  flame  after  the  stirring  stops,  and  at  the  same  time  to  bubble  and 


122     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

froth,  it  is  high  time  to  cover  the  pan  with  a  close  lid  and  leave  it  covered 
till  the  oil  no  longer  takes  fire  when  exposed  again  to  the  air.  Then  a  dry 
knife  is  introduced  and  as  much  oil  removed  as  will  adhere  to  its  point. 
If  it  does  not  permit  itself  to  be  pulled  into  long  threads  when  cool,  but 
is  too  thin,  it  must  be  heated  again  until  it  gets  the  required  consistency. 

A  good  varnish  dries  very  readily  of  itself,  and  it  is  not  only  unneces- 
sary but  inadvisable  to  mix  a  drier  with  it,  as  varnish  so  treated  is  too 
likely  to  off-set  on  the  stone. 

Several  strengths  of  printing-varnish  are  needed  for  the  various  meth- 
ods of  lithography.  Therefore  a  stock  of  thin,  medium,  and  thick  varnish 
is  needed. 

In  making  the  thin,  the  oil  has  been  reduced  to  about  two  thirds 
through  combustion.  It  is  somewhat  like  fluid  honey  and  does  not  pull 
into  threads. 

Only  a  little  more  than  half  the  oil  is  left  in  the  case  of  medium  varnish. 
It  is  thick  as  old  honey  and  can  be  pulled  into  threads  a  foot  long. 

In  the  thick  varnish  the  mass  is  not  much  less,  but  it  can  be  pulled  into 
threads  of  a  yard  in  length;  and  further  boiling  makes  it  thick  and  tough 
like  gum  elastic.  In  the  latter  case  it  can  be  used  with  advantage  when 
rubbed  down  with  oil  and  properly  thinned.  But  as  soon  as  it  has  ob- 
tained the  last-mentioned  degree  of  thickness  and  toughness,  it  must  be 
cooled  quickly,  for  then  it  is  not  far  from  hardening  completely  and  be- 
coming worthless.  In  the  beginning  it  requires  a  long  while  for  the  oil  to 
reach  the  first  degree  of  thickness,  an  hour  or  more  for  a  pound.  But  after 
that  period  the  thickening  progresses  rapidly,  so  that  a  quarter  of  the 
time  will  bring  it  to  the  point  of  total  toughness. 

To  make  printing  color  of  the  varnish,  the  proper  amount  of  lampblack 
must  be  mixed  in.  The  roasted  or  burned-out  is  best  in  this  also,  because 
the  ordinary  lampblack  delays  the  drying  and  turns  yellow  with  time. 

The  more  lampblack  is  mixed  in,  and  the  more  thoroughly  they  are 
combined  by  rubbing  down,  the  better  will  be  the  color.  But  lampblack 
must  not  be  added  in  such  quantities  that  the  color  becomes  dough-like. 

In  describing  the  various  styles  of  printing  I  will  describe  the  best 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     123 

printing-inks  also.  I  will  merely  make  the  general  note  here  that  designs 
on  stone  take  the  ink  best  when  it  is  thin  and  fluid,  but  that  there  is  less 
danger  of  off^-set  on  the  parts  of  the  stone  that  are  to  remain  white,  if  the 
ink  is  tougher  or  contains  more  lampblack. 

Too  much  lampblack  and  too  tough  a  varnish  endanger  the  finer  strokes 
and  dots,  however,  so  that  they  will  not  take  ink,  being,  as  lithographers 
say,  rubbed  out.  The  rubbing  or  grinding  effect  of  too  tough  an  ink  is 
like  that  of  pumice  or  other  grinding  material.  With  tougher  varnish, 
clearer  imprints  can  be  made  and  they  do  not  become  yellow  easily.  But 
the  inking  is  more  difficult  and  demands  greater  skill,  as  well  as  heavier 
pressure  in  the  press. 

The  varnish  can  be  mixed  not  only  with  lampblack  but  with  many 
other  colors,  which  will  be  described  when  I  reach  color  printing  in  this 
essay.  Sometimes  black  lacquer  is  used  with  advantage  instead  of  lamp- 
black; and  Frankfurter  black  is  successful  in  the  intaglio  and  aquatint 
methods. 

X 

RUBBING-UP  INK 

It  happens  often  that  weak  parts  of  a  design  cannot  withstand  the 
etching  fluid  and  are  cut  away;  also,  that  fine  lines  are  rubbed  away 
through  unskilled  treatment  during  printing.  Then  frequently  a  very 
simple  remedy  is  to  ink  the  plate  with  the  so-called  rubbing-up  ink. 

This  color  consists  of  a  thin  varnish  in  which  a  portion  of  litharge  of 
silver  or  mennig  or  white  lead  has  been  dissolved  thoroughly  over  the 
fire,  and  a  proper  amount  of  lampblack  added.  Often  it  is  good  to  add 
some  finely  powdered  sand  or  powdered  pumice  stone. 

To  prepare  this,  a  portion  of  the  thinnest  varnish  is  heated  in  a  pan 
till  it  burns.  Then  about  an  ounce  of  finely  powdered  mennig  (or  an- 
other lead  oxide)  is  stirred  in  to  each  sixteen  ounces  of  varnish  till  all  is 
thoroughly  mixed. 

A  rubbing-up  ink  can  be  made  also  by  mixing  common  printer's  ink 
with  vegetable  oil,  tallow,  and  a  very  little  soap. 


124     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

Each  of  these  colors  adheres  to  all  those  places  that  have  a  trace  of  fat 
and  thus  gradually  makes  faint  places  in  a  design  receptive  again. 

Later  I  will  describe  how  to  use  care  in  applying  this  color,  so  that  the 
entire  stone  shall  not  be  smutted  and  spoiled. 


CHAPTER  III 
CONCERNING  ACIDS  AND  OTHER  MATERIALS 

I 

GENERAL  PROPERTIES  OF  ACIDS 

Probably  most  lithographers  still  believe,  as  I  did  once,  that  the 
etching  with  acids  prepares  the  stone,  and  that  the  succeeding  appli- 
cation of  gum  merely  increases  this  preparation.  Countless  experi- 
ments have  taught  me  that  the  exact  reverse  is  true.  Gum  arable  and  a 
few  other  similar  bodies  are  the  true  factors  in  preparation,  and  the  acids 
simply  make  the  stone  more  receptive  for  them.  Only  sulphuric  acid, 
which  changes  the  surface  of  the  stone  into  gypsum,  prepares  it  without 
gum;  but  this  is  available  only  for  a  few  intaglio  methods. 

The  stone  used  for  lithography  consists  mostly  of  limestone  sated  with 
carbonic  acid.  Most  acids,  and  even  the  salts,  possess  more  affinity  for 
limestone  than  the  carbonic  acid,  which  latter  is  freed  and  escapes  in 
gaseous  form  as  soon  as  another  acid  touches  the  stone.  If  aquafortis, 
muriatic  acid,  vinegar,  etc.,  is  poured  on  the  stone,  there  rise  a  number 
of  air  blisters,  which  are  nothing  except  the  escaping  carbonic  acid,  and 
the  applied  fluid  seems  to  boil,  in  degree  according  to  its  strength.  The 
boiling  and  bubbling  last  till  the  fluid  has  sated  itself  with  lime,  after 
which  it  becomes  still,  and  is  impotent  for  further  etching. 

The  direct  eff^ect  is  the  solution  and  destruction  of  parts  of  the  surface 
of  the  stone.  If  it  has  been  coated  in  parts  with  a  fatty  substance  that 
resists  the  etching  fluid,  the  places  so  coated  are  left  untouched,  so  that, 
when  tlie  stone  is  cleaned,  all  the  fat-coated  lines  and  dots  are  in  relief. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     125 

If  the  stone  is  coated  with  fatty  matter,  but  not  so  thickly  that  the  acid 
is  entirely  resisted,  it  will  pierce  the  covering  and  eat  away  more  or  less 
of  the  stone.  If  the  etching  is  continued  or  if  the  acid  is  strong,  the  fatty 
coat  will  be  destroyed  entirely,  the  surface  of  the  stone  will  be  clean,  and 
ready  for  the  ensuing  preparation.  The  preparation  of  the  stone  for  pen 
drawings  with  oil  or  soap-water  and  several  aquatint  methods,  is  based 
on  this  principle,  that  a  very  thin  coating  of  grease  can  be  etched  away 
partly  or  wholly,  at  will. 

After  eating  away  the  surface  of  the  stone  the  acids  have  the  property 
of  giving  it  a  fine  polish. 

Therefore  if  the  stone  has  been  covered  with  a  design,  and  then  etched 
with  an  acid,  it  could  be  inked  and  printed  many  times,  as  long  as  it  is 
kept  properly  dampened  and  not  too  much  pressure  is  used  in  applying 
the  ink.  However,  this  could  be  done  also  with  a  thoroughly  clean  stone, 
using  only  water,  though  the  polish  obtained  from  etching  makes  it  much 
easier.  But  this  apparent  preparation  is  not  by  any  means  sufficient  to 
print  with  certainty;  and  it  becomes  perfect  only  if  the  stone  is  coated 
with  a  solution  of  gum  arabic  in  water  after  being  etched.  If  a  plate  that 
has  been  merely  etched  and  not  treated  with  gum  becomes  dry  during 
printing,  or  even  if  too  much  pressure  be  used  in  applying  ink  or  in  clean- 
ing with  the  more  or  less  smutty  cleaning  rags,  it  generally  takes  color 
and  smut  which  are  extremely  hard  to  remove. 

We  may  assume,  therefore,  that  the  acids  have  the  following  effects  on 
the  stone :  — 

(i)  They  will  not  attack  the  parts  coated  with  grease. 

(2)  They  will  penetrate  more  or  less  if  the  fatty  coating  is  only 
thin. 

(3)  Where  they  touch  the  stone  they  dissolve  it  and  eat  it  away. 

(4)  They  give  it  a  polish  that  facilitates  printing.  This  polish  disap- 
pears after  a  time  on  account  of  the  cleaning  with  sponge  or  rag,  but  is 
replaced  by  a  new  polish  produced  by  this  very  means. 

(5)  They  do  not  prevent  the  adherence  of  fatty  material  later,  as  soon 
as  the  stone  is  dry,  for  which  reason  the  parts  prepared  in  the  beginning 


126     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

with  acid  and  gum  arabic  must  be  prepared  again  by  renewed  etching, 
to  take  the  ink. 

(6)  Finally  the  acids  have  the  property  of  giving  to  prepared  stones 
that  have  been  used  for  impressions,  a  rough  surface  instead  of  a  polish 
when  they  are  applied  again,  because  they  attack  some  parts  more  than 
others,  producing  little  pores  with  sharp  edges  which  catch  the  ink.  This 
fact,  as  I  will  show  more  clearly  later,  makes  necessary  extraordinary 
care  if  one  wishes  to  clean  prepared  plates  or  correct  defects  with  new 
etching,  because  unskilled  handling  will  often  make  them  worse. 

II 

THE  ACIDS  SPECIFICALLY 

Nitric  acid  or  aquafortis,  muriatic  acid,  vinegar,  tartaric  acid,  and  acid 
of  wood  sorrel,  all  have  nearly  similar  effects,  but  aquafortis  and  muriatic 
acid  are  used  because  of  their  greater  cheapness. 

Oil  of  vitriol  or  sulphuric  acid,  very  much  diluted  with  water,  is  avail- 
able for  light  but  not  for  extensive  etching,  because  it  transforms  the  sur- 
face of  the  stone  into  gypsum  and  deposits  it  again,  so  that  after  that  the 
acid  cannot  penetrate  at  all,  or  only  partially.  If  a  part  of  vitriol,  say 
diluted  with  twelve  parts  of  water,  is  poured  on  a  cleanly  ground  stone, 
there  ensues  a  violent  action  which,  however,  is  only  brief.  It  might  be 
supposed  that  the  acid  is  sated  with  lime  when  it  ceases  to  act,  but  if  it  is 
moved  to  another  part  of  the  stone  it  etches  anew. 

If  the  acid  is  washed  from  the  stone  and  a  woolen  rag  be  used  to  rub 
it  after  it  is  dry,  it  takes  on  a  mirror-like  polish.  In  this  dry  condition  it 
can  be  cleansed  of  color  as  easily  as  a  copper  plate,  and  if  a  stone  thus 
polished  is  engraved  with  a  steel  tool,  it  is  possible  to  make  several  im- 
pressions from  it  just  as  from  copper.  The  polish  is  not  lasting,  however, 
because  the  skin  of  gypsum  is  very  thin.  But  it  is  a  useful  method  if  it 
is  desired  to  engrave  the  stone  and  ink  it  frequently  to  see  the  effect. 

All  the  acids  named  have  the  property,  previously  mentioned,  of  etch- 
ing the  stone  rough  if  it  has  been  prepared  before  or  used  for  impressions. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     127 

It  seems  that  the  gum  unites  more  strongly  with  some  parts  of  the  stone 
than  with  others,  admitting  the  acid  in  these  latter  places.  Possibly, 
also,  die  bubbles  caused  by  etching  may  help  to  produce  this  roughness 
by  hindering  die  uniform  action  of  the  acid.  This  seems  to  be  confirmed 
by  the  fact  that  an  etched  stone,  prepared  with  gum,  does  not  get  nearly 
so  rough  when  etched  again  with  very  weak  acid  as  it  does  when  stronger 
fluid  is  used. 

In  still  greater  degree  does  this  appear  when  using  citric  acid  or  a 
solution  of  alum  in  water.  Take  a  finely  ground  stone,  pour  diluted 
aquafortis  over  it,  prepare  it  with  the  gum  solution,  and  then  dry  it  thor- 
oughly with  a  clean  rag.  Now  pour  a  little  citric  acid  or  alum  solution 
on  parts  of  it  and  let  it  dry.  Then  paint  the  parts  so  treated  with  a  fat 
or  printing-ink.  If  the  color  is  rubbed  off  with  a  wet  rag,  it  will  be  seen 
that  the  stone  has  become  white  again  in  all  places  except  those  where 
the  citric  acid  or  alum  are.  Those  parts  will  have  taken  the  color  exactly 
as  if  they  had  been  painted  with  chemical  ink.  The  same  occurs  when 
applying  other  acids,  but  in  a  lesser  degree.  This  effect  will  be  mentioned 
in  future  for  many  methods.  Here  I  will  remark  only:  — 

It  happens  often  that  the  stone  takes  color  on  places  where  it  should 
remain  clean.  This  is  caused  by  clumsy  handling,  unclean  rags,  etc., 
and  occurs  particularly  at  the  ends,  because  they  dry  first  and  are  more 
exposed  to  careless  manipulation.  These  smutted  places  usually  can  be 
cleansed  with  a  clean  woolen  rag  and  gum  solution  or  even  with  a  wetted 
clean  finger.  But  sometimes  the  defect  will  not  yield  so  easily,  especially 
if  the  printing-color  is  soft.  Then  the  only  remedy  is  to  prepare  the  stone 
over  again,  and  that  is  the  time  when  one  must  have  regard  to  the  rough- 
ening that  ensues,  if  the  stone  is  not  to  be  rendered  worse  instead  of 
better. 

Therefore  it  is  best  in  such  cases  to  polish  the  ends  of  the  stone  with 
pumice  stone  till  all  dirt  is  gone,  and  then  to  etch  with  diluted  acid  and 
prepare  anew  with  gum  arable. 

To  be  sure,  it  is  possible  to  dip  a  clean  woolen  rag  in  strong,  even  pure 
acid,  and  thus  etch  dirt  away  from  the  ends ;  but  great  care  is  necessary 


128     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

that  no  drop  may  touch  the  design,  as  the  ink  that  adheres  to  the  latter 
is  not  strong  enough  to  resist  the  acid.  In  thus  cleansing  the  plate,  the 
roughening  is  etched  away  by  the  violent  action,  and  a  new  polish  is 
obtained. 

Still,  in  either  method  of  cleaning  dirty  places,  great  care  must  be  taken 
not  to  touch  roughly,  press,  or  rub  with  dirty  fatty  rags  or  with  dirty, 
fatty  fingers  before  the  gum  arable  is  on  it.  The  acid  eats  away  all  the 
previous  material  used  in  preparation,  and  leaves  the  plate  practically 
in  its  clean,  natural  state.  Consequently  it  will  take  on  grease  readily, 
and  the  application  of  gum  is  essential. 

It  is  feasible  to  mix  the  gum  directly  with  the  acid  solution,  but  this 
mixture  must  be  made  fresh  again  each  day,  as  otherwise  it  loses  much 
of  its  value. 

The  following  points  are  important :  — 

First:  If  the  grease  remain  long  on  a  stone  that,  though  prepared,  has 
lost  its  coating  of  gum,  it  will  penetrate  the  surface,  and  according  to  its 
amount  and  fluidity,  will  sink  more  or  less  into  the  stone,  which  will 
retain  its  polish  on  the  surface  but  become  more  inclined  to  take  dirt. 
It  is  better,  therefore,  to  leave  a  small  amount  of  gum  coating  on  the  stone 
in  such  cases. 

Second :  As  only  the  extreme  outer  surface  of  the  stone  is  prepared  by 
the  gum, and  this  is  rubbed  away  gradually  by  wiping  during  the  printing, 
so  in  the  same  proportion  of  wear  and  tear  the  original  preparation  would 
become  lost,  if  it  were  not  renewed  from  time  to  time,  that  is,  if  the  stone 
were  not  again  coated  with  gum.  Twice  a  day,  however,  is  enough. 

Third :  Because  of  this  susceptibility  of  the  surface  to  injury,  a  prepared 
stone  must  not  be  rubbed  strongly  with  fatty  material,  because  this  dam- 
ages the  surface  and  the  stone  would  readily  soak  up  the  fat. 

Fourth :  If  a  prepared  plate  is  totally  denuded  of  gum,  and  has  been 
dry  for  a  time,  especially  if  it  has  already  lost  a  part  of  the  preparation 
through  printing,  it  will  incline  very  much  to  take  color  and  smut. 
Therefore,  when  it  is  necessary  to  stop  printing,  it  is  well  to  coat  the 
plate  at  once  with  gum,  but  only  with  a  very  thin  coat.  If  this  has  not 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     129 

been  done,  and  it  is  desired  to  use  the  plate  again,  great  care  must  be 
taken  to  wet  it  with  the  very  purest  water,  or,  better  still,  with  diluted 
etching  fluid,  for  instance  one  part  aquafortis  to  five  hundred  parts  of 
water;  and  then  to  coat  it  with  gum.  To  neglect  this  precaution  may 
cause  the  total  ruin  of  the  plate.  For  safe-keeping  of  the  plates,  if  they 
are  to  be  used  again  for  printing,  the  coating  with  gum  is,  therefore, 
absolutely  necessary. 

Fifth :  Gum  can  prepare  only  a  thoroughly  clean  stone  or  one  properly 
etched.  Therefore,  if  the  surface  of  the  stone  has  even  the  least  trace  of 
grease,  it  will  take  color,  no  matter  how  thickly  it  may  be  coated  with 
gum.  On  this  fact  is  based  the  method  of  transferring  copper-plate  im- 
pressions and  other  printed  subjects,  as  will  be  described  later. 

Sixth :  If  the  stone  has  had  fat  on  its  surface,  and  this  fat  has  been 
etched  away  again,  the  power  of  the  gum  asserts  itself,  and  the  stone  will 
be  thoroughly  prepared  even  if  the  fat  has  soaked  considerably  into  the 
body  of  the  stone. 

Seventh :  Mere  grinding  of  the  stone  is  not  sufficient  to  attain  a  com- 
plete preparation  through  gum  alone.  Therefore,  if  an  otherwise  clean 
stone  has  some  places  after  grinding  where  the  fat  has  soaked  in  deeply, 
and  one  coats  it  with  gum,  the  stone  will  take  color  after  a  time  on  these 
fatty  places,  as  soon  as  the  inked  rag  has  been  rubbed  over  the  stone  many 
times.  However,  this  taking-on  of  color  is  only  slight  if  the  gum  solution 
is  thick,  and  long-continued  cleaning  will  transform  it  into  complete 
preparation. 

Eighth :  From  both  preceding  observations  we  learn :  — 

Printing  forces  the  color  to  sink  considerably  into  the  stone.  If  such 
a  stone  is  required  for  new  designs,  it  is  not  practicable  to  grind  it  so 
much  that  all  the  fatty  places  can  be  ground  away.  Therefore  it  is  ground 
only  till  it  is  thoroughly  even  again.  Then  it  must  be  well  etched ;  other- 
wise it  may  happen  that  in  printing  the  surface  will  rub  away  and  the 
entire  previous  writing  or  design  will  appear  again,  a  trouble  hardly  to 
be  remedied. 

If  the  stone  is  dirty  in  the  middle,  it  can  be  cleaned  in  many  cases  by 


I30     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

pouring  on  a  few  drops  of  oil  of  turpentine  and  the  same  quantity 
of  gum  solution,  and  rubbing  it  clean  with  a  woolen  rag.  Then  it  must 
be  washed  with  a  wet  sponge,  after  which  it  is  inked.  If  it  has  not 
lost  the  smut,  the  only  remedy  is  new  preparation.  As  this  must  be  done 
differently  for  each  different  lithographic  style,  it  will  be  described  in 
its  place. 

If  fat  has  soaked  well  into  the  stone  in  places  where  it  is  not  desired, 
it  is  always  very  difficult  to  remove  it  without  injuring  adjoining  parts. 
Correction  of  crayon  work,  if  it  has  been  etched  and  used  for  printing,  is 
especially  difficult.  It  is  true  that  the  defective  parts  can  be  cut  out 
easily  with  a  sharp  instrument,  but  then  these  places  must  be  prepared 
again.  If  weak  etching  fluid  is  used,  it  will  not  suffice.  If  strong  fluid  is 
used,  the  fine  parts  are  easily  attacked,  and  at  the  same  time  the  surface 
will  become  roughened  so  that  the  stone  often  blackens  entirely  in  the 
corrected  parts.  To  avoid  this  trouble,  and  to  facilitate  corrections,  I 
made  many  experiments  to  discover  an  acid  composition  that  should 
prepare  a  stone  anew  and  perfectly  and  yet  not  roughen  the  surface.  I 
found  the  best  material  in  phosphoric  acid,  especially  when  mixed  with 
finely  crushed  nutgall. 

Water  in  which  phosphorus  has  been  kept  a  long  time  becomes  acid 
and  etches  the  stone.  The  acid  can  be  obtained  more  quickly  by  burning 
the  phosphorus  and  catching  the  smoke.  This  method  is  somewhat  ex- 
pensive, but  one  does  not  need  much,  as  it  is  used  only  for  correcting 
defects. 

If  a  few  drops  of  aquafortis  or  other  acid  are  poured  on  a  clean  ground 
stone,  it  will  be  etched.  Now  wipe  the  etching  fluid  off  clean  and  coat  the 
plate  with  soap-water  or  chemical  ink.  As  soon  as  it  is  dry,  clean  it  of  the 
fatty  coating  with  a  few  drops  of  oil  of  turpentine.  If  it  is  dampened  then 
with  water  and  inked,  it  will  take  color  everywhere,  even  at  the  etched 
places.  If  gum  is  mixed  with  the  acid,  the  same  result  occurs,  though  the 
stone  has  been  thoroughly  prepared  where  this  mixture  touched  it.  From 
this  it  appears  that  soap-water  (and  the  alkalis  in  general)  can  destroy 
the  preparation  given  to  the  stone  and  make  it  receptive  again  to  fats. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     131 

It  is  different  if  phosphoric  acid  is  used.  This  makes  a  preparation  that 
can  be  destroyed  only  by  very  frequent  coating  of  soapy  water. 

Still  more  durable  and  resistant  to  soap  is  the  preparation  if  fine  nut- 
gall  is  mixed  with  the  phosphoric  acid  and  water  solution.  Nutgall  gives 
even  the  other  acids  the  property  of  resisting  soap  more  than  ordinarily. 
The  study  of  this  effect  led  me  to  invent  the  method  of  transforming  a 
relief  design  into  intaglio.  Also,  it  is  only  by  the  use  of  phosphoric  acid 
that  one  can  do  thoroughly  that  style  of  lithographic  work  which  resem- 
bles the  scraped  style  in  copper,  or  the  so-called  black  art. 

Ill 

GUM  AS  THE  REAL  PREPARATION 

If  a  cleanly  polished  plate  is  sprinkled  with  a  few  drops  of  gum  arabic 
dissolved  in  water,  the  sprinkled  places  will  take  no  color  so  long  as  they 
are  wet.  When  they  dry,  color  will  adhere,  but  can  be  washed  away 
easily  with  a  wet  sponge.  This  shows  that  the  gum  alone  will  prepare  the 
stone.  The  preparation  will  become  more  durable,  however,  if  the  stone 
is  etched  first. 

In  both  cases,  however,  the  preparation  extends  only  over  the  outer- 
most surface  of  the  stone,  penetrating  only  slightly,  so  that  the  least  in- 
jury will  make  it  take  color  as  soon  as  it  is  dry.  On  this  fact  is  founded  the 
intaglio  style  of  lithography.  Therefore,  if  a  clean  ground  stone  is  etched, 
then  prepared  with  gum  and  dried  clean,  it  can  be  coated  with  printing- 
ink  or  other  fat  substance  (excepting  soap  and  all  alkaline  compositions), 
and  there  will  be  no  danger  that  it  will  lose  its  preparation.  The  thicker 
the  gum  coating,  the  less  can  the  fat  penetrate. 

In  printing,  during  which  the  stone  must  be  kept  wet,  only  the  original 
coating  of  gum  is  necessary;  but  as  the  surface  thus  prepared  soon  dimin- 
ishes under  the  frequent  wiping,  it  is  necessary  in  some  forms  of  work  to 
mix  gum  with  the  printing-color  or  with  the  water  used  to  dampen  the 
stone.  More  of  this  will  be  explained  in  the  proper  place. 

Here  I  will  add  only  that  the  domestic  gum  of  cherry  and  plum  trees 


132     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

is  good  for  preparing  stones  some  years  and  worthless  in  others,  when  it 
cannot  be  dissolved  in  water.  In  possessing  the  properties  for  preparing 
stone,  the  juice  of  many  plants  and  fruits,  sugar,  and  most  mucous 
materials  of  the  vegetable  and  animal  kingdom,  such  as  white  of  egg, 
approach  gum  arable  more  or  less.  The  latter,  however,  is  to  be  preferred 
because  of  its  reliability. 

IV 

CONCERI<IING  PARTIAL  PREPARATION 

Here  I  impart  my  experiences  in  regard  to  an  astonishing  phenomenon 
that  occurs  often  in  lithography  and  gives  much  trouble,  especially  to 
beginners.  It  is  the  so-called  imperfect  or  semi-preparation,  wherein  the 
stone  betrays  a  strong  inclination  to  take  color,  and  still  will  not  do  it 
or  will  do  it  only  partially. 

(a)  If  a  cleanly  ground  stone  is  marked  with  chemical  ink,  etched,  and 
prepared,  the  marked  places  will  take  the  printing-color  and  produce 
impressions.  If,  after  the  stone  is  inked,  one  rubs  strongly  with  the  wetted 
finger,  the  color  can  be  wiped  from  the  design,  especially  if  it  has  not  been 
on  the  stone  long  and  has  been  standing  in  a  damp  place.  A  place  whence 
the  color  thus  has  been  removed  does  not  take  it  readily  when  the  inking- 
roller  is  applied  again ;  and  the  reluctance  is  the  greater  in  proportion  to 
the  length  and  violence  of  the  rubbing  and  the  toughness  of  the  printing- 
color.  The  stone  shows  clearly  the  traces  of  the  penetrating  fat;  indeed, 
if  the  stone  is  rubbed  with  a  wet  linen  rag  that  is  inky  from  previous  use, 
the  design  will  reappear  in  black.  But  as  soon  as  the  roller  is  used,  in- 
stead of  inking  these  places,  it  takes  the  color  off ;  and  whatever  means 
may  be  tried  to  make  the  defective  places  receptive  again  to  color,  it 
remains  difl!icult,  often  impossible. 

What  has  happened  is  that  the  wet  rubbing  has  cleansed  the  surface 
of  the  stone  of  all  its  fat  and  at  the  same  time  has  polished  it  and  made 
it  slippery.  It  is  a  sort  of  preparation;  and  though  the  fat  of  the  ink  has 
penetrated  into  the  interior  of  the  stone,  the  accidental  preparation  still 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     133 

offers  an  obstacle  which  prevents  the  printing-ink  from  adhering  to  the 
fat  in  those  places.  As  I  will  show,  these  places  can  be  prepared  again 
thoroughly. 

(b)  Another  case  is  when  the  design  is  too  weak,  and  has  been  attacked 
by  the  etching-fluid  too  powerfully,  though  without  being  destroyed. 
Here  the  printing-color  usually  is  removed  by  the  ink-roller,  even  though 
it  adheres  pretty  well  when  being  wiped. 

(c)  A  third  kind  of  imperfect  preparation  is  when  a  stone  inclines  to 
take  color  or  smut  on  prepared  places.  This  happens  sometimes  in  part, 
sometimes  over  the  whole  surface,  which  latter  effect  is  described  by 
saying  that  the  stone  has  acquired  a  tone. 

The  cause  of  this  phenomenon  may  be  one  of  many.  It  is  either  due 
to  the  appearance  of  a  fat  that  has  been  in  the  stone,  or  to  the  fact  that 
unskilled  manipulation  has  destroyed  the  preparation  partially. 

Thence  follow  several  observations  again :  — 

(i)  Mere  wiping  with  clean  water  will  give  the  stone  a  sort  of  prepara- 
tion if  the  material  used  for  wiping  is  suitable.  This  preparation  is  in- 
complete, but  can  be  transformed  very  easily  into  a  complete  one.  This 
incomplete  preparation  is  according  to  the  strength  with  which  the  rub- 
bing material  affects  the  stone.  Linen  and  cotton  stuffs  have  the  least 
effect.  More  potent  are  animal  wools  and  hair,  silk  or  wet  leather.  The 
printing-color  itself  has  a  preparing  property  if  it  is  made  of  very  tough 
varnish  or  contains  much  lampblack.  This  effect  is  increased  if  Frank- 
furter black  or  powdered  charcoal  is  mixed  with  the  color,  and  the  stone 
is  kept  very  wet. 

(2)  The  partial  preparation  is  produced  more  quickly  and  made  more 
durable  if  the  water  contains  gum  or  gummy  stuffs. 

(3)  The  operation  is  still  quicker  if  a  weak  etching  fluid  is  used.  A 
stronger  fluid  would  make  the  preparation  a  complete  one,  but  would 
also  injure  the  good  spots.  Then  again  one  must  remember  that  the  sec- 
ond etching  produces  the  roughness  discussed  already. 

(4)  Grinding  with  sand,  pumice,  and  other  grinding  materials  also 
produces  partial  preparation,  which  is  transformed  easily  into  complete 


134    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

preparation  by  applying  gum.  Here,  however,  the  circumstance  is  note- 
worthy that  a  plate  that  has  been  blemished  by  rubbing  can  be  made 
to  do  the  reverse,  namely,  to  take  color,  by  means  of  light  grinding  with 
water.  Assume,  for  instance,  that  a  plate  designed  and  prepared  in  relief 
style  has  been  spoiled  by  handling  so  that  the  design  refuses  to  take 
color.  It  is  necessary  merely  to  rub  it  all  over  with  water  and  fine 
sand  or  to  clean  it  with  oil  of  turpentine  so  that  all  printing-color  is 
removed  from  the  surface.  Then  place  it  in  a  receptacle  containing  a 
great  deal  of  very  clean  water.  If  it  is  ground  delicately  then  with  a  very 
clean  pumice  stone,  without  destroying  the  traces  of  the  fatty  material 
that  has  soaked  in,  it  can  be  brought  to  take  color  again  as  well  as  ever. 
Take  a  little  of  the  before-mentioned  acid-proof  ink,  smear  it  on  the  color- 
stone,  and  apply  a  clean  linen  or  cotton  rag.  Wipe  the  stone  that  is  lying 
in  the  water  very  gently  with  this  rag,  and  the  color  will  fix  itself  bit  by 
bit  on  all  parts  of  the  design,  even  if  the  entire  relief  produced  by  the 
etching  should  have  been  ground  away.  It  is  necessary  only  that  the  fat 
shall  have  soaked  in  sufficiently ;  and  this  usually  is  produced  soon  enough 
by  the  printing.  After  the  plate  has  accepted  color  completely,  it  is  to  be 
completely  prepared  by  light  etching  and  with  gum,  and  then  it  will  take 
the  color  properly  from  the  ink-roller. 

If  this  experiment  is  to  succeed,  it  is  to  be  noted  that  in  grinding  there 
must  be  no  trace  of  fat  on  the  stone  or  the  pumice,  because  the  rubbing 
during  grinding  might  transfer  this  greasiness  to  those  parts  of  the  stone 
that  are  to  remain  white.  Care  must  be  taken,  also,  not  to  press  too  hard 
in  applying  the  etching  color,  because  the  places  that  have  been  cleansed 
of  all  gum  by  the  water,  and  thus  are  inclined  to  accept  color,  will  smut 
easily.  Finally,  the  stone  must  not  be  permitted  to  dry  before  it  is  fully 
prepared  again  by  etching  and  gum  coating,  for  it  might  easily  become 
entirely  smutted  and  useless. 

This  experiment  leads  to  the  conclusion,  which  has  been  proved  correct 
in  many  ways,  that  a  soft  rubbing  in  clean  water  with  printing-color, 
especially  if  it  contains  tallow,  is  very  well  adapted  for  transforming  the 
incomplete  preparation  into  a  condition  of  accepting  fat  perfectly,  and  of 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     135 

giving  injured  places  new  potency.  Also,  that  the  contrary  effect  can  be 
produced  by  violent  rubbing,  especially  with  wool,  leather,  or  tough 
colors,  because  this  prepares  the  wet  stone  and  makes  it  useless  for 
accepting  fat.  The  first  method  may  be  used  with  advantage,  therefore, 
for  reestablishing  a  vanished  design.  The  second  method  is  good  for 
getting  rid  of  smut.  If  the  smut  has  occurred  in  previously  clean  and 
thoroughly  prepared  places,  it  can  be  destroyed  entirely.  But  if  it  is  only 
that  the  deeper  fat  has  lost  its  superficial  polish,  and  has  appeared  again, 
the  stone  will  be  only  partially  prepared  by  this  last  method  and  must  be 
newly  prepared  on  the  desired  places  with  weak  etching-fluid  and  gum, 
for  durability's  sake.  It  is  easy  to  see  how  important  this  circumstance 
is.  With  the  one  and  the  same  process  in  various  degrees  of  manipula- 
tion, opposite  results  can  be  produced;  and  I  may  declare  that  only  he  is 
to  be  termed  a  perfect  lithographer  who  has  exact  knowledge  of  this 
especial  matter. 

(5)  It  has  been  mentioned  already  that  every  sort  of  preparation  can 
be  destroyed  by  a  renewed  etching,  and  particularly  with  alum  and  citric 
acid.  The  same  is  caused  by  soap  and  alkaline  compositions;  therefore 
also  by  chemical  ink  if  it  contains  a  sufficient  amount  of  alkali. 

(6)  Simply  letting  the  stone  plate  rest  produces  important,  often  con- 
tradictory, phenomena.  If  smeared  parts  refuse  color,  clean  water  poured 
over  these  places  runs  from  them  as  quickly  as  it  does  from  the  fatty 
parts.  This  is  the  surest  sign  that  they  still  have  fat,  though  it  is  not 
sufficient  to  attract  the  color.  If  such  a  stone  is  permitted  to  lie  idle  a 
few  days,  even  if  coated  with  gum,  it  will  often  take  the  color  thereafter. 
On  the  contrary,  if  a  stone  plate  has  taken  on  color  at  the  well-prepared 
places  (usually  readily  removable  by  wiping  with  oil  of  turpentine  and 
gum  solution,  but  generally  reappearing),  it  need  merely  be  inked  after 
such  cleansing,  coated  with  gum  and  left  idle,  and  in  a  few  days  it  loses 
the  readiness  to  take  dirt. 

The  cause  of  both  phenomena  is  that  in  the  first  case  the  fats  that 
lie  deep  gradually  work  upward  into  the  partly  prepared  surface  and 
practically  reestablish  their  interrupted  communication  with  the  printing- 


136     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

color.  In  the  second  case,  the  small  quantity  of  fat  that  has  adhered 
merely  to  the  surface  has  penetrated  into  the  stone,  so  that  it  loses  its 
effectiveness.  Added  to  this,  in  the  latter  case,  is  the  fact  that  the  lin- 
seed oil,  and  the  varnish  prepared  from  it,  acquire  the  property  of  losing 
their  fats  when  they  are  dried  in  the  air,  and  thus  will  take  color  poorly 
or  not  at  all.  This  observation  led  to  the  invention  of  an  artificial  stone 
or  stone-paper. 

(7)  In  contrast  with  preparation  by  wet  wiping  there  is  the  wiping 
with  dry  and  fatty  bodies,  which  produces  full  acceptance  of  color  on  the 
partially  prepared  plate,  while  in  the  case  of  the  fully  prepared  plate 
there  occurs  at  least  partial  color  acceptance  or  semi-preparation.  As 
every  property  of  the  stone  can  be  used  for  good  impressions  just  as  well 
as  it  serves  in  unskilled  hands  to  ruin  a  design,  so  in  this  case;  the  lost 
parts  can  be  restored  through  proper  use  of  rubbing  with  a  dry,  fatty 
substance,  and  the  clean,  prepared  portions  of  the  plate  can  be  smutted. 
There  will  be  more  about  this, 

V 

SHORT  REVIEW  OF  THE  PRECEDING 

As  the  entire  art  of  stone-printing  depends  on  proper  preparation,  it 
will  not  be  out  of  place  to  express  my  views  as  to  the  nature  of  the  process. 
This  will  serve  also  as  recapitulation. 

(i)  Limestone  has  countless  little  pores.  These  can  soak  up  fatty  as 
well  as  watery  substances. 

(2)  These  can  adhere  easily  to  the  limestone  particles,  but  are  easily 
separated  again,  as  long  as  the  nature  of  the  stone  is  not  altered.  This 
alteration  is  produced  most  readily  by  sulphuric  acid,  tartaric  acid  and 
phosphoric  acid. 

(3)  Water  evaporates  from  the  pores  as  the  stone  dries.  Gum  and  other 
slimy  substances  do  not. 

(4)  Fats  soak  into  the  stone  more  and  more.  There  is  no  means  of 
destroying  them  except  to  remove  the  limestone  itself  by  grinding  or 
etching. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     137 

(5)  Printing-color  cannot  adhere  to  the  stone  so  long  as  a  proper  amount 
of  moisture  forms  a  wall  between  it  and  the  stone.  Under  any  circum- 
stances it  adheres  only  poorly  to  the  lime  particles,  and  assumes  great 
power  of  adherence  only  when  the  pores  of  the  stone  are  filled  with  fat, 
which  are  pinched  in  them,  so  to  speak,  and  with  which  the  printing- 
color  strives  to  unite  because  of  mutual  affinity. 

(6)  This  stronger  adherence  (or  complete  color  reception)  thus  hap- 
pens only  when  the  outer  color  can  reach  and  touch  the  inner  fat.  If  the 
latter  is  deep  in  the  stone,  so  that  the  communication  is  broken,  it  be- 
comes difficult  and  the  communication  must  be  restored. 

(7)  This  interruption  occurs  either  if  the  color  is  rubbed  away  by  force 
and  with  help  of  moisture,  or  if  a  substance  that  closes  the  pores  unites 
with  the  stone. 

(8)  The  rougher,  sharper,  and  more  angular  the  pores  are,  the  more 
readily  does  the  color  find  adhering  points.  It  adheres  at  first  to  the  sur- 
face by  virtue  of  merely  mechanical  conditions.  But  when  the  moisture 
which  hinders  a  complete  union  and  greater  penetration  has  dried,  the 
color  begins  to  penetrate  deeper  into  the  stone  and  to  fill  its  pores.  The 
most  color  will  always  adhere  to  rough  spots.  Therefore,  it  happens 
often,  in  some  styles  of  work,  that  a  stone  too  highly  polished  will  seem 
perfectly  black  when  inked,  and  still  fail  to  yield  a  strong  impression. 
For  the  same  reason  the  impressions  from  soft  stones  usually  are  the 
stronger,  especially  if  the  mode  of  printing  demands  the  use  of  thin 
printing-color. 

(g)  The  effect  of  the  etching  fluid  is  in  part  a  greater  polishing  of  the 
surface,  in  part  a  filling  of  pores.  Both  make  the  stone  reluctant  to  take 
color. 

(10)  If  the  stone  has  been  prepared  and  polished  already,  it  can  be 
made  rough  again  and  receptive  to  color  by  being  reetched.  At  the  same 
time  the  prepared  surface  can  be  destroyed  by  etching,  and  a  communi- 
cation established  with  the  fat  lying  in  the  interior.  The  result  is  accord- 
ing to  the  manipulation. 

So  much  in  general.  In  describing  the  various  styles  I  will  make  every- 
thing clearer. 


138     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

CHAPTER  IV 

THE  NECESSARY  TOOLS  AND  APPLIANCES 

In  lithography  there  is  use  for  many  various  tools  and  utensils.  I  will 
mention  here  merely  those  that  are  made  primarily  and  exclusively  for 
the  art. 

I 

CONCERNING  STEEL  PENS 

One  of  the  most  necessary  tools  of  lithography  is  the  steel  pen  for 
writing  and  drawing  on  the  stone.  Simple  as  its  manufacture  is  in  prin- 
ciple, it  demands  much  care  and  skill.  The  beauty  of  the  work  depends 
largely  on  a  good  and  well-cut  pen.  The  best  artist,  using  the  best  chem- 
ical ink  on  a  perfectly  prepared  plate,  cannot  do  good  work  unless  the 
pen  is  good  and  cut  to  suit  his  hand.  Therefore  it  is  necessary  to  learn 
how  to  make  these  pens,  because,  apart  from  their  costliness,  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  get  a  suitable  one  from  a  worker  in  steel.  The  ordinary  steel  pens 
that  can  be  bought  ready-made  from  stationers  are  fairly  available  for 
coarser  writing  and  drawing;  but  for  better  work  one  must  have  much 
finer  pens. 

Following  is  the  way  to  make  them :  — 

Take  the  spring  of  a  pocket  watch,  not  too  small  nor  too  broad ;  one 
and  a  half  to  two  lines  in  breadth  is  best.  Clean  off  all  fat  by  polishing 
with  sand  or  chalk.  Lay  it  in  a  glass  or  porcelain  vessel,  and  cover  it  with 
a  solution  of  aquafortis  and  water  in  equal  parts.  Let  the  acid  etch  the 
steel  till  it  has  lost  about  three  fourths  of  its  thickness,  and  has  become 
as  pliable  as  a  similar  strip  of  letter-paper.  From  time  to  time  the  steel 
must  be  removed  from  the  fluid  and  dried  with  tissue  paper.  This  pro- 
duces uniformity  of  etching.  The  steel  rarely  is  quite  uniform,  and  it  has 
happened  to  me  often  that  it  is  attacked  unequally  and  that  holes  are 
eaten  into  it  before  it  has  been  etched  away  sufficiently.  That  this,  how- 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      139 

ever,  is  due  mainly  to  the  quality  of  the  acid,  I  learned  because  I  found 
that  the  same  steel  would  be  attacked  clean  and  uniformly  as  soon  as  I 
obtained  aquafortis  from  some  other  source. 

A  pen  is  poorly  etched  if  it  has  many  elevated  points  or  pits  and  holes. 
The  former  appears  to  result  from  insufficient  cleansing,  the  latter  is  due 
to  the  quality  of  the  acid. 

Oil  of  vitriol  diluted  with  water,  or  nitric  acid  can  be  used. 

Those  who  have  a  very  light  touch  may  etch  their  pens  to  great  thin- 
ness, and  will  be  enabled  to  do  very  delicate  work.  For  a  heavy  touch 
they  must  be  firmer,  otherwise  fine  strokes  will  look  shaky. 

When  the  steel  is  thin  enough,  it  is  removed  and  cleansed  with  fine 
sand  that  it  may  not  become  rusty  in  future.  Then  it  is  cut  into  pieces 
two  inches  long  with  good  English  shears.  Now  these  must  be  shaped 
half-round.  To  do  this,  lay  them  on  a  flat  stone  and  beat  them  length- 
wise till  they  bend,  using  a  small  watchmaker's  hammer,  whose  faces 
are  pretty  thin  but  well  rounded.  Two  or  three  sheets  of  paper  laid  under 
the  steel  facilitate  the  work. 

Another  way  to  give  it  the  half-round  form  is  to  file  a  groove  into  a 
stone,  giving  it  the  exact  shape  the  pen  is  to  have.  Into  this  groove  lay 
the  piece  of  steel,  put  in  a  drop  of  vegetable  oil,  and  polish  with  a  steel 
instrument  whose  end  resembles  a  broken  but  well-rounded  nail.  Use 
sufficient  pressure,  and  the  steel  will  gradually  assume  the  desired  shape. 

Either  of  these  methods  may  be  used,  according  to  preference.  It  is 
to  be  noted  that  the  degree  of  roundness  depends  on  the  artist's  need, 
one  finding  a  well-rounded  pen  better,  another  preferring  one  not  so  well- 
rounded.  The  less  the  pen  is  rounded,  the  more  it  will  resemble  a  brush 
when  used,  but  the  points  will  not  spread  so  well  without  considerable 
pressure.  The  more  they  are  hollowed,  the  stiffer  are  the  pens  and  the 
more  easily  will  the  points  spread  when  pressed. 

After  the  pen  is  curved,  it  must  be  cut.  With  small,  well-sharpened 
scissors  cut  a  slit  about  one  line  in  length  into  one  end.  Then  cut  away 
from  the  two  sides  as  much  as  necessary  till  the  point  is  sufficiently  fine. 
Do  not  cut  away  too  much  at  once,  as  the  pen  bends  easily  and  then  must 


140     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

be  straightened  out  again,  which  demands  especial  skill.  It  is  well  to  do 
the  cutting  from  the  point  toward  the  sides. 

A  good  pen  must  have  both  points  very  uniform,  so  that  they  touch 
perfectly  and  lie  on  the  stone  evenly  in  the  position  given  them  by  the 
hand  when  working.  The  cutting  alone  will  do  this,  but  a  small,  very 
fine  whetstone  may  be  used  to  aid. 

A  newly  cut  pen  is  somewhat  rough  at  times  and  cuts  into  the  stone, 
thus  gathering  powder  that  hinders  the  work.  This  defect  generally  cures 
itself  after  a  few  strokes  on  the  stone.  Beginners  generally  spoil  their  pens 
by  bending  them  every  few  moments.  Then  they  must  be  straightened 
out,  which  demands  practice  and  judgment.  It  cannot  be  described, 
because  the  bending  may  assume  a  thousand  shapes.  It  may  be  men- 
tioned, however,  that  the  points  must  always  touch,  but  must  under  no 
circumstances  interfere,  one  being  forced  behind  the  other.  It  is  good, 
sometimes,  if  one  can  see  through  the  slit  when  looking  backward  from 
the  point.  Some  even  cut  a  tiny  bit  out  of  the  middle  for  this  purpose, 
but  that  demands  great  skill  and  extremely  good  scissors,  as  otherwise 
the  opening  will  be  too  large,  which  will  spoil  the  pen  entirely. 

The  ordinary  drawing-pens,  which  can  be  loosened  or  tightened  with 
screws,  can  be  used  very  readily  for  drawing  lines,  if  their  points  are  made 
from  very  good  steel  that  can  be  ground  very  fine  and  thin.  However, 
for  much  line-work,  for  instance  the  background  of  a  picture  which  con- 
sists of  lines  hatched  crosswise,  it  is  better  to  use  the  other  pens.  The 
ordinary  drawing-pens  are  too  likely  to  catch  a  little  dust  or  dirt  between 
their  points,  and  then  will  spoil  the  lines. 

Of  all  work  of  the  pen  style  in  lithography,  the  most  diflicult  is  to 
draw  very  fine  and  even  lines  with  a  ruler.  I  have  succeeded  best  by 
using  a  pen  previously  so  cut  or  ground  that  both  points  touched  in  the 
position  in  which  I  was  accustomed  to  hold  the  pen  when  guiding  it  with 
the  ruler.  It  is  evident  that  the  pen  must  be  held  to  the  ruler  on  its  side, 
so  that  the  groove  that  contains  the  ink  does  not  point  in  the  direction 
of  the  ruler,  but  away  from  it.  It  is  well  if  there  is  a  tiny  space  in  the  slit, 
as  it  helps  the  free  supply  of  ink. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     141 

II 

CONCERNING  BRUSHES 

Brushes  are  used  for  various  purposes,  as  to  prepare  the  plates,  cleanse, 
etch,  etc.  Here,  however,  we  speak  chiefly  of  the  small  brushes  required 
for  writing  and  designing.  For  this  are  used  the  very  smallest  and  best 
miniature  brushes,  and  they  must  be  especially  treated. 

If  it  is  desired  that  the  brush  make  thicker  strokes  under  pressure,  the 
ordinary  condition  of  it,  in  which  all  the  bristles  come  to  a  point,  is  quite 
sufficient.  But  it  is  very  difficult  to  lay  on  strokes  of  uniform  thickness 
with  them.  Press  the  brush  on  the  table,  spread  the  bristles  fanwise  with 
a  knife  and  cut  away  from  each  side  about  a  half-line  deep.  Turn  the 
pencil  to  the  other  side,  stroke  it  again  to  spread  it,  and  cut  the  same 
amount  as  before  from  each  side.  Continue  this  till  there  remain  only 
ten  or  twelve  bristles  of  the  original  length  in  the  brush.  Then  cut  these 
even  at  the  ends.  These  should  not  be  altogether  the  middle  ones  if  the 
pencil  is  to  be  first-class.  Neither  should  they  be  too  far  apart.  They 
should  hang  together  well  when  the  brush  is  dipped  into  the  ink,  but  not 
so  closely  that  they  will  not  let  the  ink  pass  well.  With  a  brush  success- 
fully trimmed  thus,  the  handsomest  drawings,  resembling  copper  plate, 
can  be  done  with  ease. 

For  coarser  strokes,  coarser  brushes  are  needed.  More  bristles  are 
permitted  to  remain  in  them. 

Ill 

CONCERNING  ENGRAVING  NEEDLES 

These  serve  for  the  intaglio  process,  to  draw  into  the  stone,  and  must 
be  of  the  best  and  hardest  steel.  In  Munich  there  are  also  used  the  little 
five-angled  watchmakers'  borers,  which  are  glued  between  two  pieces  of 
wood  planed  round  in  form  of  a  pencil  and  so  cut  at  the  end  that  only  a 
bit  of  the  tool  is  visible.  In  using  very  thin  needles  one  has  the  advantage 
that  they  are  ground  and  sharpened  easily. 

For  coarser  strokes,  coarser  needles  are  needed.    For  fine  strokes, 


142     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

especially  if  they  are  to  go  in  all  directions,  the  needles  are  best  ground 
perfectly  round. 

IV 

CONCERNING  THE  DRAWING-MACHINE 

To  transfer  drawings  very  accurately  and  reversed  on  the  stone,  which 
is  necessary  especially  in  the  case  of  charts  and  plans,  a  pantograph  is 
used  in  Munich,  which  is  so  arranged  that  the  stone  is  upside  down  and 
elevated.  The  inscribing-needle  is  just  opposite  the  one  that  is  managed 
by  the  hand,  and  when  one  follows  the  lines  of  the  original  exactly,  there 
results  a  perfect  but  reversed  copy  on  the  stone.  Such  drawing-machines 
can  be  obtained  from  Herr  Liebherr  and  Company  in  Munich.  This 
skilled  mechanician  also  makes  a  sort  of  pantograph  of  his  own  invention, 
with  which  drawings  can  be  transferred  to  stone,  reversed  or  otherwise, 
and  in  any  desired  proportion.  Pictures  of  such  machines  may  be  ob- 
tained from  him. 


CONCERNING  OTHER  APPLIANCES 

These  are :  a  grinding-table,  an  etching-trough,  some  rulers,  a  writing- 
table,  some  music-writing  pens  and  rastrums  for  those  who  wish  to  print 
music,  small  brush  for  spatter-work,  a  wiping-machine  for  the  wiping 
method,  several  rollers  and  balls  for  inking,  and  some  presses  for  wetting 
and  pressing  the  paper. 

Any  firm  table  may  be  used  for  grinding,  but  it  is  better  to  have  one 
made  heavy  enough  to  resist  the  strain  of  the  powerful  friction,  and  so 
made  that  the  stones  can  be  fastened  on  it  readily.  If  this  work  is  done 
in  a  room,  it  must  have  a  depression  in  the  middle  and  a  hole,  that  the 
water  may  run  off  into  a  receptacle.  Along  the  sides  should  be  a  low  rim, 
that  the  sand  and  dust  may  not  drip  all  over  the  floor. 

The  etching-trough  is  a  square,  well-pitched  box  whose  bottom  is 
depressed  toward  the  middle,  that  the  etching  fluid  may  gather  there  and 
run  through  a  hole  into  a  receptacle,  so  that  it  can  be  poured  over  the 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     143 

stone  again.  The  trough  must  be  large  enough  to  accommodate  the 
stones  easily.  These  must  not,  however,  touch  the  bottom,  but  must 
rest  on  little  pieces  of  wood  or  cross-pieces. 

Besides  the  ordinary  rulers,  a  large,  broad  one  is  required,  about  three 
to  four  feet  long,  five  inches  wide,  and  so  shaped  that  on  one  side  it  is  one- 
half  inch  thick,  on  the  other  only  two  lines  thick.  On  this  latter  side  a 
strip  of  pear  wood  must  be  glued  and  very  truly  planed  off.  Thus  it  can 
be  used  for  drawing  lines,  although  the  real  purpose  of  this  ruler  is  only 
for  supporting  the  hands  when  working  on  stone,  that  they  may  not 
touch  the  prepared  surface. 

If  the  work-table  is  made  with  high  pieces  at  the  ends  so  that  the  ruler 
can  rest  on  them  without  touching  the  stone,  no  ruler  supports  are  re- 
quired. Otherwise  one  must  have  these  two  pieces,  a  little  higher  than 
the  stone,  so  that  the  ruler  may  rest  on  them. 

A  specially  made  work-table  has  another  advantage.  In  the  middle 
there  can  be  a  turntable  on  which  the  stone  rests,  so  that  it  can  be  moved 
easily  into  any  position,  something  that  is  very  difficult  with  large  stones 
without  this  arrangement. 

Music-writing  pens  are  brass  or  silver  tubes  which  have  the  shape  of 
musical  notes  underneath,  and  which  take  up  such  a  quantity  of  chem- 
ical ink  that  one  can  make  about  twenty  notes  without  re-dipping.  That 
they  shall  not  take  up  too  much  ink,  a  fine  wire  is  fastened  in  the  centre. 
These  instruments  must  be  very  exactly  ground  and  their  use  demands 
some  skill  if  the  notes  are  to  be  uniform. 

Instead  of  this  instrument  a  piece  of  wood  may  be  used,  but  this  must 
be  inked  anew  for  each  note.  To  avoid  dipping  too  deep,  it  is  best  to 
spread  some  ink  on  a  little  stone  and  ink  the  instrument  from  this.  It 
must  be  wetted  in  the  beginning,  that  the  ink  may  be  sucked  up  about 
three  lines  high.  After  that  the  ink  on  the  stone  need  merely  be  touched 
with  it,  and  this  makes  the  work  very  uniform.  Beginners  find  this  easy 
to  use.  But  one  works  more  swiftly  with  the  other. 

Of  the  rastrums,  there  is  nothing  to  say  except  that  they  are  of  steel 
and  very  even  at  the  ends  so  that  they  touch  the  stone  in  all  places.  They 


144     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

serve  to  draw  the  five  lines  for  music.  For  making  the  broad  strokes  for 
notes,  one  can  use  coarse  drawing-pens,  or  coarsely  cut  steel  pens;  but 
the  best  are  those  adjustable  drawing-pens  that  are  made  from  three 
blades. 

The  brush  for  spatter-work,  the  wiping-machine,  and  the  dauber  will 
be  described  in  the  description  of  the  styles  of  work  for  which  they  are 
used. 

Ink-rollers  and  balls  are  for  laying  on  the  printing-color.  The  latter 
are  made  from  soft  leather,  stuffed  with  horsehair,  like  the  ordinary  book- 
printer's  balls.  The  former  are  wooden  cylinders  with  thin  handles,  of 
any  requisite  length  and  about  four  to  five  inches  thick.  They  are  wound 
with  two  or  three  thicknesses  of  woolen  cloth  and  then  covered  very 
firmly  and  evenly  with  leather.  Usually  there  is  used  sheep's  leather  from 
which  the  grease  has  not  been  entirely  removed.  Calfskin,  worked  white, 
is  good  and  more  durable.  Dogskin  is  considered  best.  Some  printers 
use  soft  red  calfskin,  turning  the  inner  side  out.  The  leather  must  not  be 
stitched  with  linen  but  with  silk  thread,  because  linen  does  not  take  the 
ink  as  well  as  leather  and  silk  do.  The  leather  must  be  dampened  when 
being  drawn  over  the  cylinder. 

A  fair  stock  of  these  rollers  is  required,  because  they  are  liable  to  be- 
come water-soaked  during  use,  when  they  lose  much  elasticity  and  fail 
to  give  good  service,  so  that  dry  ones  must  be  on  hand. 

It  is  not  well  to  have  movable  handles  on  the  rollers,  because  then  they 
are  likely  to  roll  over  the  stone  too  lightly  and  it  is  not  within  one's  power 
to  lay  on  the  ink  thoroughly.  To  prevent  blistering  the  hands,  thick 
leather  covers  may  be  used.  Then  it  is  possible  to  use  any  desired  pres- 
sure. 

Paper  presses  are  needed  both  to  obtain  a  uniform  dampening  of  the 
paper  as  also  to  restore  the  proper  flatness  to  the  printed  paper.  Models 
are  to  be  seen  at  the  shops  of  all  book-printers  and  binders. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     145 

CHAPTER  V 
CONCERNING  PAPER 

Three  kinds  of  paper  are  used  mainly  in  lithography.  They  are:  — 

(a)  the  transparent,  oiled  or  varnished  paper; 

(b)  underlay  or  waste  paper;  and 

(c)  the  printing-paper. 

I 

TRANSPARENT  PAPER,  AND  THE  TRANSFER  OF  OUTLINES  TO  THE  STONE 

Oiled  paper  is  used  for  tracing  a  drawing  accurately  and  then  trans- 
ferring it  to  the  stone  either  by  transferring  or  by  re-tracing  it  on  the 
stone.  It  must  have  the  following  properties:  — 

(i)  It  must  not  smut  the  original  drawing  on  which  it  is  laid.  Conse- 
quently it  must  be  absolutely  dry. 

(2)  It  must  be  very  transparent,  like  glass,  so  that  the  underlying 
drawing  or  painting  can  be  seen  perfectly. 

(3)  The  ink  or  lead  crayon  used  for  copying  must  lie  on  it  easily  and 
plainly. 

It  is  at  its  best  if  it  is  easy  to  work  on  it  with  a  fine  brush,  using  Chi- 
nese ink,  or,  (if  the  drawing  is  to  be  transferred  directly  to  the  stone),  with 
the  soft  chemical  ink  described  under  the  caption  "Transfer  Ink."  Gen- 
erally this  can  be  done  without  further  preparation  in  the  case  of  most 
papers  made  transparent  by  oiling.  Varnished  paper,  however,  which  is 
far  more  transparent,  generally  must  be  well  washed  with  milk  and  dried 
again  beforehand,  that  it  may  take  the  ink  well  and  permit  work  with  the 
finest  strokes. 

(4)  Finally,  a  good  tracing-paper  must  be  very  fine,  pliable,  tender 
and  yet  not  in  the  least  brittle.  There  is  some  very  transparent  varnished 
paper,  but  it  breaks  at  the  first  attempt  to  bend  it,  so  that  it  is  hard  to 
trace  the  drawing  afterward  on  stone  with  the  tracing-needle,  because 


146     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

nearly  every  stroke  tears  the  paper  and  the  lines  and  outlines  become 
coarse. 

Very  good  transparent  paper  may  be  made  as  follows:  — 

Take  the  finest  writing  or  vellum  paper  and  soak  it  with  nut  or  poppy 
oil,  mixed  with  a  little  sugar  of  lead  to  make  it  dry  more  readily.  When 
well  soaked  with  oil,  dry  it  a  bit  between  waste  paper  and  hang  it  up. 
Usually  it  is  available  in  a  few  days.  This  paper  is  cheaper  than  the 
paper  sold  by  stationers  under  the  names  of  straw  paper,  etc.,  and  about 
equally  transparent.  Still  more  transparent  will  it  be  if  instead  of  the 
oil  a  varnish  cooked  from  the  oils  is  used.  In  this  also  the  sugar  of  lead  is 
an  excellent  drier.  To  make  the  varnish  easier  to  manipulate  and  more 
readily  penetrative  for  the  paper,  it  may  be  thinned  down  with  oil  of 
turpentine.  If  it  is  desired  to  manufacture  a  greater  quantity  of  this 
paper,  one  sheet  is  laid  on  another  and  painted  with  varnish.  Then  the 
whole  mass  is  left  for  some  time  covered  with  a  stone  plate  or  a  board, 
that  the  varnish  may  soak  properly  and  evenly  into  all  the  sheets.  After- 
ward the  sheets  are  hung  up  singly  to  dry.  The  more  varnish  they  have, 
the  more  transparent  will  they  be;  but  too  much  is  not  good.  Care  must 
be  taken  that  no  drops  of  varnish  adhere.  It  is  best  to  brush  the  varnish 
evenly  over  each  sheet  before  hanging  it  up. 

Silk  paper,  such  as  is  used  in  copper-printing  to  lay  between  impres- 
sions to  prevent  off-set,  is  still  better  for  varnishing  because  it  is  finer. 
Only  it  must  be  very  even  and  have  no  holes.  The  very  greatest  fineness 
of  paper  is  desirable,  for  the  reason  that  then  the  strokes  made  by  the 
needle  on  the  stone  are  fine  and  not  coarse. 

Instead  of  varnish  made  by  boiling  down  nut  or  poppy  oil,  one  can  use 
Venetian  turpentine,  which  merely  has  been  thinned  down  with  one 
half  as  much  oil  of  turpentine.  Such  paper  generally  is  dry  enough  after 
twenty-four  hours.  Too  large  a  quantity  must  not  be  made  at  one  time, 
because  it  becomes  tough  and  brittle  after  a  while. 

Even  with  the  most  transparent  paper  it  occurs  that  certain  delicate 
drawings,  and  especially  color  pictures,  will  not  show  through  sufficiently. 
Then  the  drawing  must  be  fastened  to  a  window  pane  to  obtain  added 


L 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     147 

illumination.  This  manner  of  work  is  very  uncomfortable,  however,  and 
the  arms  hurt  one  soon,  so  that  it  is  necessary  to  stop.  It  is  better  to  have 
a  tracing-board  made  with  a  strong,  clear  pane  of  glass  in  the  centre. 
Under  it  is  a  mirror  so  adjusted  that  it  reflects  light  upward  through  the 
drawing. 

It  is  understood,  of  course,  that  in  tracing  only  the  outlines  are  copied 
and  not  every  stroke  of  shading,  etc.  Although  the  final  work  is  greatly 
facilitated  by  the  observation  of  the  utmost  care  in  tracing,  the  tracing 
of  every  little  detail  will  merely  make  the  work  involved  and  perplexing. 
Practice  must  show  the  proper  degree  of  exactness.  A  very  good  and 
skillful  artist  often  needs  only  a  few  main  outlines,  to  reproduce  the 
original  picture  with  the  greatest  accuracy. 

Once  the  drawing  has  been  traced  sufficiently,  the  transfer  paper  must 
be  coated  very  lightly  and  evenly  with  red  chalk.  Then  it  is  fastened  to 
the  stone  with  wax  and  all  the  lines  are  traced  under  moderate  pressure 
with  a  well-polished  needle  whose  point  is  not  sharp  but  rounded.  Where 
the  needle  presses  the  tracing-paper,  the  color  that  is  on  the  other  side 
will  take  hold  of  the  stone  and  thus  transfer  the  drawing  to  it.  If  the 
needle  is  too  sharp,  it  will  injure  the  paper,  and  often  the  stone  and  the 
etching  surface.  The  color  on  the  paper  must  be  rubbed  off  very  carefully 
with  a  soft  rag.  If  it  is  too  thick,  it  will  transfer  itself  coarsely  to  the  stone. 
The  red  chalk  may  be  put  on  the  side  of  the  paper  that  has  the  drawing 
on  it,  or  on  the  reverse.  This  is  decided  according  as  the  picture  is  to  be 
on  the  stone  in  the  same  position  as  the  original  or  reversed.  If  the 
impression  is  to  be  like  the  original,  the  drawing  on  the  stone  must  be 
reversed ;  therefore  in  that  case  the  tracing-paper  is  coated  on  the  same 
side  as  the  drawing.  This  side  is  laid  on  the  stone,  and  the  picture,  which 
shows  through,  is  traced. 

In  some  cases  it  is  good  to  transfer  the  drawing  from  the  tracing  imme- 
diately to  the  stone  without  tracing  it  with  the  needle.  In  this  case,  the 
paper  is  not  coated  with  red  chalk.  The  paper  is  merely  laid  on  the  pre- 
pared stone,  drawing  face  down,  and  put  through  the  press.  If  the  draw- 
ing has  been  made  with  the  chemical  transfer  ink,  blackened  with  lamp- 


148     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

black  or  colored  with  vermilion  according  to  need,  it  will  transfer  itself 
to  the  stone.  This  will  occur  also  in  the  case  of  a  clean  stone  prepared  for 
pen  drawing  if  the  drawing  is  made  with  lead  pencil  or  with  red  chalk, 
wet  or  dry.  Even  the  ordinary  ink  made  from  nutgall  and  vitriol  of  iron 
will  transfer  if  it  contains  a  little  sugar  or  gum,  but  the  paper  must  be 
well  dampened  and  good  pressure  must  be  applied  to  the  press. 

In  the  pen-drawing  process,  the  stone  must  be  cleansed  of  possible 
surplus  of  color  after  the  transfer.  This  is  done  by  light  rubbing  with 
sand.  It  is  not  necessary  in  other  processes.  Any  surplus  of  color  that 
may  have  fixed  itself  to  the  stone  is  removed  by  gentle  dusting  with  a 
soft  brush. 

II 

WASTE  PAPER 

This  is  used  partly  for  cleansing  plates,  partly  and  chiefly  as  underlay 
in  printing. 

If  sheets  are  to  be  printed  on  both  sides,  usually  a  little  of  the  first 
impression  off-sets  on  the  underlay  paper,  and  if  it  were  used  again  at 
once,  it  would  off-set  on  the  next  impression.  Therefore  a  fresh  underlay 
paper  must  be  used  for  each  impression  of  the  second  side. 

This  must  not  be  coarse,  for  fear  of  causing  unevenness  or  holes  in  the 
leather  in  the  printing-frame  or  in  the  so-called  scraper-wood  that  makes 
the  impression.  A  good  quantity  of  this  must  be  on  hand,  that  fresh  paper 
may  always  be  available  while  the  used  paper  is  drying  again.  Each  sheet 
that  has  been  used  should  be  hung  up  at  once,  and  not  more  than  three 
or  four  sheets  should  be  hung  over  each  other,  to  facilitate  the  drying. 
A  special  appliance  is  needed  for  this  as  well  as  for  drying  the  impressions. 
A  number  of  slats  are  fastened  to  the  ceiling,  leaving  a  space  under  it  of 
about  two  feet,  and  about  one  foot  distant  from  each  other ;  and  the  sheets 
are  hung  on  these  with  a  pole  made  for  the  purpose,  such  as  may  be  seen 
in  any  printery. 


\JV 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     149 

III 

PRINTING-PAPER 

Not  all  kinds  of  paper  are  equally  good  for  lithography.  On  the  whole, 
however,  it  may  be  assumed  that  this  form  of  printing  is  very  similar 
to  copper-printing  and  book-printing,  and  that  the  paper  that  is  good  for 
these  branches  is  suitable  also  for  the  stone,  if  only  it  does  not  contain 
too  many  impurities,  grains  of  sand  and  other  substances  that  make  any 
considerable  roughnesses.  Such  roughnesses,  if  considerable,  have  an  ill 
effect  not  only  on  the  impression,  but  chiefly  on  the  leather  in  the  printing 
frame.  If  the  scraper  is  of  wood,  the  leather  will  suffer  less,  but  there  will 
be  caused  grooves  in  the  scraper  that  must  be  planed  out  again,  because 
otherwise  each  following  impression  will  show  a  more  or  less  plain  streak. 
If  the  scraper  is  of  metal,  the  leather  may  tear  or  the  stone  itself  may  be 
injured  if  the  foreign  substance  in  the  paper  is  very  hard.  Therefore  it  is 
well  to  hold  the  paper  to  the  light  before  dampening  or  printing  and  to 
remove  any  apparent  defect  of  magnitude  with  a  little  knife. 

Usually  the  paper  considered  most  excellent  for  copper-plate  work  is 
thick,  tender,  uniform  paper,  half-sized  or  not  sized  at  all.  It  may  be  the 
same  for  lithography.  However,  it  must  not  be  supposed  that  good  im- 
pressions cannot  be  obtained  with  sized  paper.  I  have  seen  some  that 
were  as  good  as,  and  even  better  than,  impressions  made  at  the  same  time 
on  unsized  paper.  Much  depends  on  the  dampening  of  the  paper,  on  its 
make,  and  chiefly  on  the  manner  of  sizing  it.  On  the  best  sized  English 
vellum  paper,  I  have  made  blacker  impressions  than  I  could  make  on  the 
best  Swiss  copper-plate  printing-paper,  so  that  I  had  to  use  fifty  per  cent 
less  printing-color.  On  the  contrary,  in  using  an  indubitably  genuine 
English  vellum  paper  with  a  bluish  tinge,  which  had  been  sized  only  too 
well,  I  could  not  get  good  impressions  despite  all  efforts.  It  was  very 
hard  to  dampen  also.  Every  sheet  must  be  dampened  singly,  turned  fre- 
quently and  manipulated  to  smooth  out  the  thousand  irregularities  that 
are  caused  by  the  moisture.  Equally  difficult  to  use  were  some  sorts  of 
genuine  Holland  paper,  because  they  took  color  reluctantly.  If,  however, 


150     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

the  correct  degree  of  moisture  is  attained,  if  the  paper  takes  it  well,  and, 
finally,  if  the  color  is  right  for  it,  it  can  be  used  with  thorough  success. 

I  must  mention  a  circumstance  that  may  defeat  all  efforts  of  a  beginner 
should  he  try  to  use  a  certain  kind  of  paper  which  is  very  handsome, 
durable,  very  white,  well  sized,  but  a  little  rough  and  possessing  an  odor 
somewhat  resembling  honey  as  well  as  urine.  Sometimes  it  is  called 
Kiihnel,  and  comes  from  a  French  factory.  This  paper  has  the  property 
of  depriving  the  stone  of  its  preparation,  and  consequently  to  smut  it. 
This  paper  can  be  used  only  for  dry  printing,  where  it  does  not  require 
any  dampening  at  all. 

It  is  said  that  this  property  of  smutting  the  stone  is  due  to  the  chemical 
bleaching.  Others  ascribe  it  to  a  peculiar  kind  of  size.  Perhaps  it  is  both. 
The  same  defect  is  found  in  many  sorts  of  colored  papers  if  there  is  much 
alum  in  the  coloring-matter,  or  if  the  tints  are  made  from  alkaline  colors 
or  those  that  contain  soapy  matter,  or  if  it  has  been  smoothed  with  soap. 
This,  however,  is  readily  understood  after  my  explanation  of  the  chemistry 
of  the  stone. 

IV 

DAMPENING  THE  PAPER 

Dry  paper  may  be  used  for  printing.  In  certain  work  it  is  necessary,  in 
order  not  to  spoil  the  paper.  As  a  rule,  however,  paper  is  moistened  in 
lithography  as  well  as  in  other  forms  of  printing,  to  make  it  softer  and 
more  receptive  to  the  printing-color. 

After  what  I  have  said  of  chemical  printing,  it  would  seem  that,  as 
dampness  is  antagonistic  to  the  reception  of  color,  the  moisture  of  the 
paper  would  hinder,  rather  than  aid,  printing.  But  experience  proves  the 
opposite.  A  damp  paper  takes  color  better  than  a  dry  one. 

But  this  is  not  because  damp  paper  is  an  exception  to  the  rule.  On  close 
study,  we  see  that  here,  too,  it  only  proves  all  that  I  said  about  the  stone. 

Perfectly  clean,  and  especially  unsized  paper,  refuses  color  like  the  pre- 
pared stone,  when  it  has  been  wetted  thoroughly  so  that  it  is  saturated. 
But  here,  too,  mere  water  is  not  a  complete  preparation.  Under  strong 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     151 

pressure  it  is  forced  away  readily  from  the  paper,  the  printed  places  are 
dried  and  the  color  adheres.  If  the  pressure  is  not  sufficient  to  force  all  the 
water  away,  the  impression  will  be  imperfect.  The  tougher  the  printing- 
color  is,  the  more  will  it  resist  the  dampness  and  the  greater  must  be  the 
pressure. 

Experience  has  taught  me  the  following:  — 

(i)  Every  paper  not  spoiled  with  fat  will  permit  itself  to  be  prepared, 
like  the  stone,  with  water  so  that  it  will  take  no  color.  In  the  case  of  en- 
tirely clean,  unsized  paper,  water  alone  is  sufficient.  Mucous,  gummy,  and 
acid  substances  increase  its  power.  Unsized  printed  paper  need  merely  be 
dipped  in  water,  laid  on  a  stone,  and  coated  with  oily  color,  and  the  printed 
parts  will  all  take  the  color  while  the  rest  of  the  paper  remains  white. 

(2)  Any  great  pressure  will  remove  this  preparation  and  the  whole 
paper  will  take  color. 

(3)  The  oil  color  must  be  very  thin  and  fluid,  because  a  tougher  one  will 
take  hold  of  the  fibres  of  the  paper  and  tear  them  off. 

The  foregoing  experiences  applied  to  the  theory  of  the  print  itself  lead 
to  the  following  conclusions :  — 

(a)  The  paper  to  be  used  for  printing  must  never  be  too  wet,  because  the 
most  powerful  pressure  could  not  remove  the  water  sufficiently. 

(b)  Paper  that  is  too  wet  is  prone  to  adhere  to  the  stone  with  its  printed 
parts,  which  are  likely  then  to  tear  away  easily,  thus  damaging  or  ruining 
the  work.  This  happens  the  more  readily  if  the  pressure  be  not  sufficient. 
If  the  scraper  or  the  stone  is  not  uniform  and  even,  it  is  very  prone  indeed 
to  tear  at  the  places  subjected  to  the  least  pressure,  because  there,  where 
the  water  has  not  been  sufficiently  squeezed  away,  the  paper  remains  soft 
and  fragile,  while  the  pressure  still  is  great  enough  to  grip  the  fibres  of  the 
paper. 

(c)  Therefore  the  paper  must  be  only  slighdy  dampened  if  the  color  is 
very  tough,  partly  to  prevent  tearing,  partly  to  oppose  no  undue  obstacle 
to  the  reception  of  the  color. 

(J)  Paper  dampened  too  much  stretches  in  printing  and  produces 
uneven  and  dirty  impressions. 


152     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

{e)  The  quality  of  the  water  is  not  important  so  long  as  it  is  not  dirty  or 
putrid,  in  which  latter  case  it  may  infect  the  paper  and  rot  it. 

(/)  Just  how  much  the  paper  must  be  dampened  can  be  learned  only 
from  experience,  because  papers  vary  very  much  and  in  the  case  of  sized 
papers  it  depends  chiefly  on  the  kind  of  sizing.  On  the  average,  we  may 
calculate  one  wet  sheet  to  eight  dry  ones  in  sized  papers  and  one  wet  one 
to  ten  or  twelve  dry  ones  in  unsized  papers. 

The  following  is  the  best  way  to  dampen  paper:  Lay  two  or  three  dry 
sheets  on  a  straight  board.  Then  dip  a  sheet  into  water.  Let  the  water 
drip  off  a  little  and  lay  the  damp  sheet  carefully  on  the  others.  Now  lay 
eight  or  ten  dry  sheets  on  top  of  this.  Then  put  on  another  wet  one  and 
then  eight  or  ten  dry  ones  and  so  on  till  all  the  sheets  destined  for  printing 
have  been  so  piled  up.  Put  over  all  a  board  weighted  with  a  medium  heavy 
stone  plate.  After  half  an  hour  increase  the  weight  to  several  hundred- 
weight or  squeeze  the  paper  in  a  press.  Leave  it  thus  at  least  twelve  hours. 
Then  it  is  generally  ready  for  print.  In  aquatint  it  must  be  dampened 
more,  about  six  dry  sheets  coming  to  one  wet  one. 

Very  thoroughly  sized  paper  is  easier  to  moisten  if  each  sheet,  or  at  least 
each  second  one,  is  wetted  with  a  sponge. 

Sometimes  it  is  necessary  to  turn  the  dampened  paper  in  order  to  re- 
move the  creases.  Separate  the  sheets  into  two  piles  and  lay  a  few  sheets 
from  one  to  the  other  so  that  the  altered  positions  will  press  the  sheets  flat 
again. 

With  many  papers,  especially  the  unsized,  it  is  possible  to  use  the 
method  of  book-printers,  who  immerse  a  whole  book  in  water  and  then 
lay  the  sheets  in  two  equal  parts.  This  would  be  best  studied  at  a 
printer's.    It  requires  much  practice. 

If  dampened  paper  is  permitted  to  lie  some  hours  without  being 
weighted  down,  the  margins  will  become  too  dry,  and  then  there  will  be 
creases  during  printing,  which  can  be  remedied  only  by  a  second  damp- 
ening. The  reason  is  that  dry  paper  is  not  so  large  as  wet  paper,  so  that 
the  dry  margins  form  a  kind  of  frame  which  is  too  small  for  the  inner  wet 
portion. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     153 

In  printing-processes  that  require  many  plates,  and  especially  if  the 
sheets  are  large,  only  dry  paper  can  be  used,  as  otherwise  the  register 
will  be  imperfect.  To  be  sure,  it  can  be  done  by  using  great  care,  but  too 
much  practice  and  attentiveness  is  needed. 

With  the  exception  of  the  aquatint  processes,  good  printing  can  be 
done  with  dry  but  unsized  paper.  But  the  press  must  have  twice  or 
thrice  the  pressure.  This  makes  the  printing  more  difficult  and  endangers 
the  stone  if  it  is  not  thick. 


CHAPTER  VI 

PRESSES 

An  exact  description  of  all  presses  used  hitherto  for  lithography 
would  demand  a  book  that  would  nearly  equal  the  present  one  in 
magnitude.  Many  drawings  would  be  necessary,  which  would  increase 
the  cost  of  this  text-book  without  adequate  benefit,  as  I  have  learned 
that  one  rarely  can  find  a  mechanician  skillful  enough  to  make  a  machine 
even  when  he  has  the  very  best  description  and  a  perfect  illustration 
before  him.  I  advise  all  who  intend  to  enter  lithography  to  send  for  a 
model  to  Munich  or  some  other  place  where  the  art  is  being  practiced 
with  success.  I  myself  am  willing  to  furnish  exact  models  for  the  price 
of  one  louis  d'or,  which  must  be  remitted  with  the  order. 

There  is  no  press  as  yet  that  is  so  perfect  for  lithography  that  it  leaves 
nothing  to  be  desired.  The  press  whose  plan  I  laid  before  the  Royal 
Academy  of  Sciences  in  Bavaria,  which  does  its  own  inking-in  and  which 
can  be  worked  by  water-power,  has  not  yet  been  built  on  a  large  scale, 
so  that  its  value  cannot  be  stated  exactly. 

I  am  only  too  well  aware,  however,  of  a  grave  defect  in  lithography, 
which  is  that  the  beauty  and  even  the  number  of  impressions  depend 
mainly  on  the  skill  and  the  industry  of  the  printers.  A  good  press  is 
necessary,  to  be  sure;  but  even  with  the  best  a  poor  workman  will  pro- 
duce nothing  but  trash,  because  in  this  respect  lithography  is  far  more 


154    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

difficult  than  any  other  printing-process.  I  shall  not  admit  that  litho- 
graphy has  made  a  great  step  toward  the  utmost  perfection  until  the 
erring  work  of  the  human  hand  has  been  dispensed  with  as  much  as  possi- 
ble and  the  printing  is  done  almost  entirely  by  machinery.  Therefore  I 
am  determined  to  realize  the  ideas  I  have  in  this  direction  and  I  shall 
inform  the  friends  of  the  art  of  my  success  at  once. 

I 

PROPERTIES    OF    A   GOOD   PRESS 

It  has  been  observed  that  inscriptions,  and  particularly  drawings, 
look  better  on  the  stone  than  on  the  impression  afterward  made  from  the 
stone.  Partly  this  may  be  due  to  the  color  of  the  stone  which  softens 
the  picture,  because  an  impression  made  on  yellow  paper  resembling  the 
stone  color  looks  very  much  like  the  drawing  on  the  stone.  But  the  great 
cause  of  the  difference  is  that  the  color  does  not  transfer  itself  to  the 
paper  with  the  degree  of  strength  and  clearness  that  it  possesses  on  the 
stone.  That  this  perfect  degree  can  be  attained,  none  the  less,  there  are 
many  successful  impressions  to  prove. 

If  the  plate  is  well  designed  and  well  prepared,  it  will  take  the  color 
well  and  clearly,  but  the  printer  may  apply  too  much  or  too  little,  the 
color  may  be  too  hard  or  too  soft,  or,  even  if  the  stone  is  properly  inked, 
the  paper  may  accept  color  poorly  or  be  too  damp  or  dry.  Chiefly,  how- 
ever, it  is  the  press,  according  to  my  experience,  that  most  affects  the 
quality  of  an  impression. 

In  most  lithographic  presses  the  printing  is  done  by  the  so-called 
scraper.  This  is  a  thin  slat  of  hard  wood,  mostly  maple,  pear,  or  boxwood. 
It  is  one  line  thick  on  the  side  intended  to  do  the  printing,  and  the  mech- 
anism of  the  press  forces  it  on  the  paper,  which  is  on  the  stone  and  cov- 
ered with  an  overlay  of  waste  paper  and  tensely  stretched  leather.  This 
pressure  forces  the  color  against  the  paper  along  the  whole  length  of  the 
siat,  and  only  one  line  broad.  The  scraper  is  forced  bit  by  bit  over  the 
entire  plate,  or  it  remains  motionless  and  the  plate  is  drawn  underneath  it. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     155 

It  will  be  observed  that  this  kind  of  press  does  not  produce  the  entire 
impression  vertically  and  at  once  as  in  book-printing,  but  that  it  is  succes- 
sive, as  in  copper-plate  printing,  with  the  difference  that  the  copper-plate 
press  uses  a  roller  instead  of  a  scraper. 

As  the  scraper  must  be  pressed  down  with  great  force  (often  as  much 
as  sixty  and  more  hundredweight)  and  must  pass  over  the  leather  with 
this  immense  pressure,  there  is  a  tremendous  friction,  and  despite  the 
fact  that  the  leather  is  tensely  stretched  and  lubricated  with  fat,  it  is  con- 
siderably pulled  and  strained  by  the  scraper.  This  pulling  and  strain- 
ing communicates  itself  to  the  paper  under  the  leather.  Thus  all  the 
lines  of  the  design  become  a  little  bit  squashed  in  the  direction  described 
by  the  scraper.  If,  however,  the  leather  is  very  good  and  very  tensely 
stretched  in  the  frame,  if  it  is  well  lubricated,  and  if  the  printing-paper 
with  its  underlay  is  not  too  wet,  the  pulling  is  inconsiderable  so  that 
scripts  and  drawings  in  broad  effects  are  not  affected  noticeably.  Draw- 
ings in  detail,  however,  and  crayon  work  wherein  there  is  hardly  a  per- 
ceptible space  between  the  dots,  are  so  affected  by  the  slightest  displace- 
ment that  they  produce  a  smeared,  sooty  impression. 

The  scraper  has  a  second  fault.  If  the  paper  has  impurities,  it  injures 
the  scraper  readily.  A  groove  scratched  into  the  scraper  will  prevent  any 
further  good  impression  if  the  injury  is  considerable,  because  it  will  leave 
a  streak.  The  only  remedy  is  to  take  the  scraper  off  and  plane  it,  fashion- 
ing it  accurately  to  the  surface  of  the  stone.  I  have  tried  to  remedy  this 
by  making  a  scraper  of  metal.  As  this  causes  even  more  friction  than 
wood,  I  laid  a  strip  of  strong  paper  over  the  scraper,  which  generally  was 
good  for  three  hundred  impressions  before  it  was  worn  out.  Then  I 
merely  needed  to  move  it  forward  a  bit;  so  that  a  strip  of  paper  as  long  as 
the  scraper  and  six  inches  wide  was  available  for  some  thousands  of  im- 
pressions. The  pressure  attained  with  a  metal  scraper  is  greater  than 
with  wood;  but  it  has  the  disadvantage  that  it  is  hard  to  print  a  stone 
whose  surface  is  not  absolutely  level,  whereas  a  wooden  scraper  can  be 
planed  to  suit  any  irregularity  in  the  stone. 

The  foregoing  shows  that  a  good  lithographic  press  must  have  these 
two  properties:  — 


156    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

(i)  It  must  not  pull  or  shift  the  paper  in  the  least. 

(2)  It  must  produce  a  uniform  impression  without  weak  spots  or 
streaks. 

The  other  properties  it  needs  in  common  with  other  presses,  such  as:  — 

(3)  It  must  be  powerful  enough  to  produce  the  necessary  pressure. 

(4)  It  must  combine  the  greatest  possible  speed  with  this  power. 

(5)  It  must  be  easily  operated,  to  save  the  workman. 

All  these  qualities  combined  are  not  to  be  found  in  any  press  hitherto 
applied  to  lithography. 

n 

APPLICATION  OF  BOOK-  AND  COPPER-PLATE  PRESSES  TO  LITHOGRAPHY    ' 

If  we  consider  the  peculiarities  of  book  and  copper  print,  we  find  a 
decided  difference  between  them  that  affects  printing  importantly. 

The  letters  of  book-type  are  raised,  the  engraving  in  copper  is  depressed . 
It  is  evident  that  the  former  requires  no  such  power  for  making  impres- 
sions as  the  latter.  Therefore  the  presses  are  so  different  that  copper 
plates  cannot  be  printed  on  a  book-press  and  vice  versa.  Now,  as  the 
stone  combines  both  the  elevated  and  the  depressed  principles,  the  natu- 
ral idea  would  be  to  combine  the  fundamental  principles  of  both  presses 
as  nearly  as  possible  for  stone-printing.  In  book-print,  only  the  types 
are  exposed  to  the  pressure,  and  in  the  average  printed  sheet  these  are 
only  one  fourth  part  of  the  entire  surface.  The  remaining  white  space  is 
not  affected  at  all  by  the  press.  In  the  stone,  however,  the  elevation  of 
any  part  of  a  design  is  so  slight  that  the  entire  surface  is  affected,  and 
consequently  a  stone  plate  offers  four  times  as  much  resistance.  A  book- 
press  therefore  would  print  a  stone  only  if  it  were  arranged  for  a  pres- 
sure four  times  greater.  Now,  for  a  stone  of  the  size  of  a  letter-sheet  the 
power  required  to  print  with  one  vertical  pressure  would  be  five  or  six 
hundred  hundredweight,  a  pressure  that  could  be  supported  only  by 
a  thick  stone  laid  very  exactly  on  a  perfect  foundation. 

An  ordinary  copper-plate  press  increases  the  pulling  of  the  paper  so 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     157 

much  in  the  case  of  a  stone  plate  that  the  impression  would  be  worthless. 
This  pulling  is  not  caused,  as  in  the  case  of  the  scraper,  during  the  impres- 
sion itself,  as  already  described,  but  it  is  caused  before  the  impression 
through  the  endeavor  of  the  cylinder  to  force  the  plate  along  under  it. 
Once  the  stone  is  under  the  cylinder,  the  paper  is  not  pulled  noticeably, 
because  the  cylinder  glides  over  the  leather  much  more  gendy  and  with 
much  less  friction  than  the  scraper. 
This  defect  might  be  corrected:  — 

(a)  By  supporting  the  cylinder  so  that  it  would  come  down  on  the  stone 
only  at  the  point  where  the  print  is  to  begin.  But  as  the  stone  must  be 
drawn  pretty  well  forward  for  convenience  in  inking,  this  would  demand 
that  the  cylinder  be  revolved  forward  and  backward  again  as  far  as  is 
needed  for  the  impression,  which  means  a  great  demand  on  the  strength 
of  the  printers,  not  to  count  the  loss  of  time. 

(b)  A  second  way  would  be  to  plane  off  a  piece  two  inches  wide  from 
the  cylinder  at  the  point  where  the  impression  is  to  begin.  The  stone 
could  be  forced  under  this  space  readily,  and  when  the  cylinder  revolves, 
it  presses  forcibly  at  once  without  puHing  the  paper  very  much. 

(c)  The  press  might  be  fitted  with  iron  wheels  with  cog  teeth  to  engage 
similar  cogs  on  the  cylinder.  This  would  prevent  pulling,  but  the  mechan- 
ical work  would  need  to  be  very  accurate. 

(d)  The  best  arrangement  will  be  the  following:  Set  the  upper  cylinder 
so  high  that  the  stone  can  be  brought  under  it  without  touching.  Then 
bring  it  down  with  a  screw,  or  better  still,  with  a  lever  that  can  be  oper- 
ated by  the  foot. 

The  first  figure  in  the  plate  showing  presses  represents  about  how  a 
copper-plate  press  is  to  be  fitted  for  this  work.  On  the  whole,  this  is  an 
ordinary  copper-plate  press,  but  the  upper  roller  is  set  with  its  two 
axles  or  spindles  in  two  iron  levers,  each  of  which  is  fastened  to  a  piece  of 
wood  with  iron  screws  one  inch  thick.  Each  of  these  pieces  of  wood  is 
covered  with  strong  sheet  iron  and  can  be  adjusted  higher  or  lower  with 
two  screws  or  with  underlay  of  pasteboard.  This  is  necessary  that  the 
press  may  be  adjusted  to  varying  pressures.  The  two  other  ends  of  the 


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two  levers,  in  which  the  cylinder  sits,  can  be  raised  or  lowered,  so  that 
the  cylinder  also  can  rise  or  sink.  Now  two  springs  or  two  weights  are  so 
adjusted  that  the  cylinder  with  the  levers  always  remains  elevated.  To 
force  it  down  on  the  stone,  an  iron  beam  enters  both  sides  of  the  press 
with  two  pegs  so  adjusted  that  when  the  beam  is  turned  ninety  degrees 
the  levers  are  depressed  at  least  two  inches.  As  the  cylinder  is  about  in 
the  middle  of  the  two  levers,  it  will  thus  be  depressed  one  inch,  which 
suffices  to  permit  the  stone  to  pass  under  it  freely  while  it  is  elevated  and 
gives  the  greatest  pressure  when  it  is  depressed.  However,  the  upper 
cylinder  must  not  be  one  inch  distant  from  the  stone,  but  at  the  most 
only  one  fourth  inch,  for  the  remaining  space  of  three  fourths  inch  is 
required  to  provide  margin  for  the  elasticity  of  the  various  materials,  and 
also  to  give  margin  for  increased  pressure  whenever  demanded. 

On  one  end  of  the  iron  beam  with  the  two  pegs  is  an  arm  or  lever  which 
is  joined  to  a  thin  stick  with  a  treadle.  This  tread  is  so  arranged  that  it 
remains  elevated  of  itself.  If  the  pressure  is  to  reach  sixty  or  more  hun- 
dredweight, it  must  not  be  fastened  directly  to  the  treadle,  but  a  second 
lever  is  required  which  is  affixed  to  the  side  of  the  press. 

Without  going  into  tedious  detail  I  cannot  further  describe  this  press. 
Mechanicians  will  understand  me  readily  and  perhaps  be  able  to  add 
many  improvements.  My  belief  is  that  a  copper  press  so  arranged  would 
diminish  all  danger  of  squashing  and  pulling  the  impression,  furnish 
powerful  pressure,  permit  overlays  of  felt  or  fine  cloth,  and  make  possible 
considerable  facility  and  celerity,  which  is  a  great  advantage,  because 
impressions  always  are  better  if  too  much  time  is  not  lost  between  inking 
and  printing. 

To  safeguard  the  stone  against  cracking  in  such  a  press,  the  following 
points  are  to  be  noted :  — 

(i)  The  stone  must  be  ground  very  true  on  the  under  side  as  well  as 
the  upper. 

(2)  Both  cylinders  must  be  perfectly  true,  and  care  is  to  be  taken 
particularly  that  one  cylinder  is  not  thin  toward  the  middle  and  the  other 
thick,  as  this  would  easily  crack  the  stone  lengthwise. 


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The  board  on  which  the  stone  rests  must  be  equally  true  and  uniformly 
thick.  At  the  same  time  it  must  be  very  thin,  only  one  half  inch  diick  at 
most.  It  will  get  very  heavily  squeezed  during  the  printing,  and  the  more 
the  impression  approaches  the  centre,  the  more  concave  will  it  become. 
The  parts  farthest  from  the  point  of  pressure  then  resist  unduly  if  the 
board  is  thick,  and  thus  become  the  chief  cause  of  cracking  the  stone.  If 
the  rollers  are  very  true  and  the  stone  is  very  uniform,  it  is  almost  im- 
possible to  crack  it  if  it  is  passed  between  the  two  rollers  without  a  board 
underneath.  If  the  board  is  thin,  it  is  as  if  it  were  not  there. 

I  believe  that  competent  mechanicians  can  improve  the  present 
presses  greatly. 

Ill 

LITHOGRAPHIC  PRESSES  USED  HITHERTO 

Most  owners  of  lithographic  printeries  have  tried  their  hands  at  invent- 
ing presses,  but  in  the  end  it  has  always  been  something  based  on  the 
scraper  or  the  cylinder  principle.  I  myself  have  made  more  than  twenty 
designs.  Some  were  very  useful  and  had  advantages  either  in  power  or 
convenience,  but  generally  were  handicapped  by  some  defect,  so  that  I 
cannot  even  say  with  certainty  which  was  the  best  of  them  all.  So  much 
depends  on  the  mechanic's  execution  of  one's  plans,  and  a  perfect  design 
can  be  so  spoiled  by  a  workman  that  it  is  worthless. 

I  will,  however,  recount  the  best  that  has  been  done  so  far  for  litho- 
graphy. 

In  Munich  two  kinds  of  stone  presses  are  mostly  used.  They  are:  — 

(i)  The  lever  press,  or,  as  the  workmen  generally  call  it  because  of  its 
form,  the  Gallows  Press. 

(2)  The  Cylinder  or  so-called  Star  Press,  the  latter  term  being  used  be- 
cause a  star-shaped  lever  is  commonly  used  instead  of  a  crank  to  turn  the 
rollers. 

I  have  tried  and  found  good  the  following:  — 

(3)  A  press  with  double  levers. 

(4)  A  gyrating  or  sliding  press. 


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I  know  also  — 

(5)  The  roller  press  used  by  Herr  Andre. 

(6)  And  the  press  of  Herr  Steiner  in  Vienna. 

Herr  Miiller  in  Karlsruhe  and  Herr  Ackermann  in  London  have  a  press 
with  paper  cylinders  the  construction  of  which  is  unknown  to  me. 

IV 

'    THE  LEVER  PRESS 

This  was  the  first  press  that  I  used  with  advantage,  and  it  is  used  still  in 
Munich  in  all  important  establishments  for  work  that  demands  speed  par- 
ticularly. It  would  be  an  excellent  printing-machine  in  all  respects  if  it  did 
not  have  the  defect  that  its  power  cannot  be  increased  much  more  than  six 
hundredweight  without  forcing  theworkmen  to  undue  exertions.  Therefore 
it  is  no  longer  available  for  large  plates  or  for  works  that  require  immense 
power.  It  is  very  good  for  pen  designs  not  larger  than  a  letter-sheet,  and 
two  workmen,  one  to  ink-in  and  the  other  to  print,  can  produce  twelve 
hundred  impressions  in  a  day  without  hardship. 

The  pressure  is  produced  by  a  lever  six  to  twelve  feet  long,  fastened 
to  the  scraper  below  and  to  a  spring  (an  elastic  board)  above.  It  is  con- 
nected with  a  tread,  and  when  forced  down,  presses  with  the  desired  force 
on  the  scraper  and  so  on  the  plate.  The  board  holding  the  lever  overhead 
must  be  partially  movable  like  a  spring  because  the  lever  describes  a  part 
of  a  circle  on  the  plate  below.  Hence  the  pressure  at  the  beginning  and 
end  of  the  impression  is  not  so  great  as  in  the  middle,  and  great  care  in 
choice  of  wood  and  manufacture  is  demanded  to  give  the  spring  board  the 
necessary  elasticity  and  power  combined.  I  have  found  a  board  of  young 
dried  pine  the  best,  the  dimensions  being  six  feet  long,  eight  inches  wide, 
and  two  inches  thick,  provided  that  the  fibres  all  ran  lengthwise.  It  is  not 
always  possible  to  find  a  good  board  at  once.  Often  I  have  found  that  the 
difference  between  two  boards  made  a  great  difference  in  the  effectiveness 
of  two  presses  otherwise  exactly  the  same. 

The  scraper  arm  consists  of  two  parts,  of  which  the  shorter  one,  to  which 


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the  scraper  is  fastened  with  a  screw,  is  only  one  and  one  quarter  feet  long. 
The  other  part  is  as  long  as  the  height  of  the  press  permits.  The  higher  a 
lever  press  is,  the  better  is  it,  because  then  the  circular  motion  described 
by  the  scraper  wood  approaches  a  straight  line  more  and  more,  so  that  the 
press  exercises  a  more  uniform  pressure  during  all  stages  of  the  impres- 
sion and  is  easier  to  handle.  The  second  illustration  shows  this  kind  of 
press  in  the  moment  when  the  impression  has  been  finished,  the  printing- 
frame  opened,  and  the  scraper  arm  swung  back  again. 

The  printing-frame  is  much  like  a  book-printing  frame,  and  is  furnished 
inside  with  a  second  small  frame  which  holds  the  paper,  being  furnished 
with  small  springs  or  strings.  When  the  frame  has  been  turned  over  the 
stone,  the  paper  must  be  at  least  half  an  inch  from  the  stone  to  avoid  smut- 
ting, which  will  occur  if  it  touches.  The  paper  must  not  touch  the  stone  till 
pressure  is  applied,  and  then  only  on  the  spot  pressed  downward  by  the 
scraper. 

As  soon  as  both  parts  of  the  scraper  arm  are  in  a  straight  line,  so  that 
they  form  practically  one  piece,  the  scraper  wood  is  pulled  down  and  the 
printer  draws  it  toward  himself  over  the  printing-frame  and  the  stone 
plate.  At  this  time  the  following  is  to  be  observed:  — 

(i)  Both  parts  of  the  arm  must  be  so  fastened  to  each  other  that  they 
may  be  bent  hke  a  knee,  but  once  they  are  straight  in  line,  they  must 
stay  in  that  position.  It  is  well,  therefore,  so  to  adjust  the  parts  that  they 
will  not  be  directly  over  each  other,  but  rather  exceed  a  straight  line 
under  pressure,  and  bend  a  little  inward.  The  position  of  the  scraper 
must  be  considered  also.  On  the  whole  the  following  rule  holds  good:  the 
point  where  both  parts  are  united  with  a  nail  or  a  screw  must  not  be  in  a 
perfectly  straight  line  between  the  point  where  the  scraper  rests  and  the 
point  where  the  arm  is  fastened  above,  but  should  be  at  least  two  and  a 
half  inches  forward  of  that  point.  Otherwise  the  arm  may  spring  out- 
wards toward  the  workman  and  injure  him  severely.  The  third  illus- 
tration shows  the  construction  of  the  scraper  arm  and  the  scraper. 

(2)  The  arm  must  be  grasped  as  low  as  possible  when  being  drawn 
toward  one's  self,  in  order  to  diminish  the  danger  of  springing  outward. 


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(3)  The  workman  must  press  his  body  tightly  to  the  table  of  the  press 
to  get  proper  leverage.  Standing  free,  a  man  of  moderate  strength  could 
not  move  the  scraper  at  all  when  the  pressure  is  on,  but  a  man  standing 
in  correct  position  can  do  it  without  difficulty. 

(4)  Under  very  heavy  pressure  the  inker-in,  who  stands  on  the  other 
side  of  the  press,  can  help  by  pushing. 

The  scraper  is  a  piece  of  pear  wood  as  long  as  the  size  of  the  plate  de- 
mands. Its  height  is  about  four  inches,  its  thickness  one  inch.  The  end 
that  rests  on  the  leather  is  trimmed  down  so  that  it  has  a  thickness  of 
only  one  line.  This  end  must  be  especially  true  and  planed  to  fit  the  stone, 
also  neatly  rounded  off.  It  should  be  so  fastened  to  the  arm  that  it  may 
be  adjusted  to  the  position  of  the  stone.  The  stone  does  not  always 
lie  truly  horizontal  in  the  press,  sometimes  because  it  is  not  uniformly 
thick,  sometimes  because  the  underlay  is  not  quite  even,  and  sometimes 
because  the  press  itself  has  been  a  little  strained.  If  the  scraper  has  been 
made  properly,  it  will  adjust  itself  to  the  stone,  even  if  the  scraper  arm 
is  not  quite  plumb  on  the  stone,  a  condition  that  often  occurs  with  small 
work,  such  as  titles  and  other  things  that  are  at  the  end  of  a  stone. 

(5)  For  every  press  a  number  of  scrapers  of  different  dimensions  must 
be  in  stock.  Generally  a  lever  press  is  so  made  that  the  printing-frame 
can  be  raised  or  lowered  according  to  the  thickness  of  the  stone.  Then 
the  scraper  must  be  changed  accordingly. 

(6)  The  connection  of  the  upper  board  with  the  tread  is  made  by  a 
thin  stick  that  is  fastened  to  a  lever  below,  by  means  of  a  small  iron  piece 
which  contains  several  holes  that  serve  to  adjust  the  height  of  the  tread 
according  to  need. 

(7)  The  leather  in  the  printing-frame  is  strong  calfskin.  It  must  be 
stretched  very  evenly  and  tensely  and  must  be  smeared  from  time  to 
time  very  thoroughly  with  tallow. 

(8)  On  the  outer  side  of  the  frame  there  are  four  wooden  strips  that 
can  be  adjusted  as  desired.  One  serves  to  show  the  point  where  the  im- 
pression is  to  begin.  Another  shows  where  it  is  to  end.  Both  must  be  so 
strong  that  they  can  resist  the  scraper.  The  other  two  are  adjusted  at 
the  sides  and  guide  the  scraper. 


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V 

THE  CYLINDER  PRESSES 

WTien  Herr  Professor  Mitterer  installed  a  lithographic  institution  for 
the  Fcyertags-Schule,  the  lever  press  appeared  to  him  to  demand  too 
much  labor,  especially  when  powerful  pressures  were  desired.  He  in- 
vented the  so-called  Cylinder  or  Star  Press,  which  has  its  place  in  most 
establishments,  especially  those  in  other  countries.  It  has  had  minor 
changes  made  in  it  by  many  persons,  but  on  the  whole,  nobody  has  suc- 
ceeded in  improving  it  notably,  except  for  a  considerable  improvement 
made  by  Herr  Mitterer  himself.  My  description  will  include  this  im- 
provement. 

The  cylinder  press  might  almost  be  called  a  reversed  lever  press.  Herr 
Mitterer  borrowed  from  it  the  idea  of  effecting  the  impression  with  a 
scraper,  but  he  did  not  let  it  move  over  the  plate,  as  in  the  lever  press. 
He  gave  the  scraper  a  fixed,  immovable  position  while  the  stone  was 
drawn  through  underneath,  thus  making  his  press  resemble  a  copper- 
plate printing-press  somewhat. 

Illustration  number  4  shows  this  machine  in  the  moment  when  the 
impression  has  been  made.  In  the  middle  of  the  machine  is  a  cylinder 
ten  to  twelve  inches  thick  and  as  long  as  the  breadth  of  the  press.  It  has 
strong  iron  spindles  that  revolve  in  well-lubricated  brass  bearings.  Above 
the  cylinder  is  a  board  on  which  is  fastened  the  stone  with  the  printing- 
frame.  The  scraper  is  on  a  strong  lever  that  is  held  up  by  a  counterpoise. 
When  everything  is  ready  for  printing,  the  scraper  is  forced  down.  By 
means  of  a  strong  iron  hook  it  engages  the  treadle  and  thus  can  be  pulled 
down  with  the  utmost  tension.  Then  the  cylinder  is  turned  by  means  of 
two  levers  affixed  to  the  crank,  and  this  draws  the  stone  and  printing- 
frame  through  under  the  scraper.  One  workman  alone  can  do  this  under 
ordinary  pressure,  but  an  appliance  at  the  other  end  of  the  press  enables 
a  second  workman  to  help. 


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VI 

GYRATING  SCRAPER  AND  DOUBLE  LEVER  PRESSES 

I  have  already  mentioned  the  gyrating  scraper  press.  I  have  improved 
it  considerably.  It  has  the  form  of  the  ordinary  lever  press,  but  all  the 
parts  can  be  much  lighter.  For  instance,  the  lever  is  only  one  and  a  half 
inches  thick.  The  spring  (the  elastic  board)  is  very  elastic  and  need 
exert  a  pressure  of  only  one  hundred  pounds.  The  little  scraper  is  only  an 
inch  long  and  presses  on  the  plate  with  a  force  of  fifty  pounds.  The  press 
is  useful  for  very  thin  stones  that  might  crack  under  greater  pressure. 
The  pressure,  nevertheless,  is  great,  because  it  is  all  exerted  on  such  a 
small  area.  The  press  has  two  defects.  It  is  easy  to  miss  many  parts  of 
the  design  with  the  small  scraper,  and  the  paper  is  likely  to  stick  to  the 
leather,  producing  poor  register.  I  have  obviated  these  faults  with  the 
following  invention:  A  large  scraper  is  fastened  to  the  lever  to  press  on 
the  plate  with  a  force  of  one  hundred  pounds.  A  small  one  is  fastened  to 
this  in  such  a  manner  that  it  can  be  moved  to  and  fro  easily.  While  one 
workman  rubs  to  and  fro  with  the  small  scraper,  another  draws  the  entire 
stone  and  printing-frame  slowly  along  under  the  large  one.  If  good  under- 
lays are  used  in  addition,  this  process  will  produce  beautiful  work  that 
cannot  be  produced  so  well  with  any  other  machine.  However,  a  large 
field  is  left  in  this  form  for  improvement. 

The  fact  that  the  concentric  motion  produced  by  a  single  lever  can  be 
transformed  into  an  almost  straight  motion  by  use  of  a  second  lever,  led 
me  to  design  a  double  lever  press,  which  has  turned  out  very  successful, 
giving  great  force  with  speed.  As  its  description  would  demand  much 
space,  and  since  on  the  whole  it  ranks  equally  with  the  improved  cylinder 
press,  I  offer  to  send  models  to  those  who  desire  to  have  everything  useful 
for  the  art. 


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VII 

THE  OTHER  STONE  PRINTING-PRESSES 

The  cylinder  press  of  the  Chemical  Printery  in  Vienna  would,  without 
question,  be  of  excellent  service  for  the  art  if  it  were  more  powerful.  Its 
construction  is  as  follows: The  stone  is  fastened  to  a  table  with  the  print- 
ing-frame which  has  fine  felt  instead  of  leather.  To  make  the  impression 
a  brass  cylinder  eight  inches  thick  is  rolled  over  it.  As  this  cylinder  would 
not  produce  enough  pressure  from  itself,  despite  its  massive  make,  two 
iron  beams  are  fastened  to  the  axles.  They  pass  through  the  table  and 
are  fastened  to  a  box  that  contains  iron  or  leaden  weights.  Unfortunately 
the  space  prevents  the  use  of  more  than  five  or  six  hundredweights,  and 
this  is  too  little  for  the  large  surface  of  the  cylinder,  thus  forbidding  any 
sharp,  clear  impressions. 

This  kind  of  press  could  be  greatly  improved  if  it  were  built  higher  to 
give  more  room  below  for  weights,  or  the  beams  could  be  lengthened  and 
passed  through  the  floor  into  a  lower  room,  thus  giving  space  enough  to 
add  weights  up  to  fifty  and  more  hundredweight. 

The  press  of  Herr  Andre  is  much  like  this,  except  that  its  cylinder  is 
only  three  inches  in  diameter  and  that  it  is  forced  on  the  stone  not  with 
weights,  but  with  a  lower  cylinder  that  presses  upwards.  It  prints  fast, 
like  the  other,  but  does  not  possess  enough  power. 

In  conclusion,  I  must  remark  that  the  concentration  of  ideas  caused 
by  writing  this  chapter  has  led  me  to  begin  experiments  toward  making 
a  lithographic  press  which  shall  leave  nothing  to  be  desired.  As  soon  as 
my  aflfairs  permit,  I  shall  execute  this  on  a  large  scale,  and  if  the  result 
fulfills  my  hopes,  it  will  be  a  pleasure  to  describe  it  accurately  to  all 
friends  of  my  art,  or  to  furnish  them  models  at  cost. 


PART  II 

CONCERNING  THE  VARIOUS  METHODS 

THERE  are  two  principal  methods  of  stone-printing,  Relief  and 
Intaglio. 

In  the  former,  the  fatty  parts  of  the  stone  are  not  attacked  by  the 
etching  fluid,  while  the  rest  of  the  stone  is  dissolved  more  or  less.  There- 
fore the  fatty  places  are  left  in  relief. 

In  the  second  method,  the  design  is  either  engraved  into  the  stone  with 
a  sharp  steel  instrument  or  etched-in  with  acid. 

The  relief  method  has  the  advantage  of  greater  speed  and,  generally,  a 
greater  number  of  impressions.  It  is  easy  for  the  artist  to  apply,  especially 
in  crayon  work.  The  intaglio,  however,  makes  possible  finer  and  more 
powerful  work,  and  again,  in  many  cases,  is  the  easier  of  the  two  for  the 
artist.  Therefore  it  is  impossible  to  say  in  a  general  way  which  is  the 
better.   It  depends  on  the  work  to  be  done. 

CHAPTER  I 
RELIEF  METHOD 

To  this  method  belong  principally:  (a)  Brush  and  pen  designs;  (b)  the 
crayon  method;  (c)  the  transfer  method;  (d)  the  wood-cut  method; 
(e)  a  sort  of  scraped  style;  and  (/)  spatter-work. 

I 

BRUSH  AND  PEN  WORK 

This  is  one  of  the  best  in  lithography,  and  perhaps  the  best,  because 
it  touches  daily  needs  most  direcdy.    It  can  be  used  not  only  for  all 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      167 

kinds  of  writings,  but  also  for  illustration  that  does  not  demand  the 
supreme  perfection  of  copper  plate.  The  ease  of  manipulation,  the 
speed  and  the  almost  countless  number  of  impressions  recommend  it 
especially.  It  may  even  be  prophesied  that  in  future,  when  true  artists 
have  become  better  acquainted  with  it,  it  will  be  used  for  high  forms  of 
art. 

Much  as  this  method  has  to  recommend  it,  it  has  been  used  mainly  for 
script  and  music,  and  it  is  difficult  to  gain  adherents  and  followers  for  it. 
The  reason  is  an  apparently  trivial  thing,  but  it  has  made  most  artists 
averse  to  it.  Since  stone-printing  exists  I  have  found  only  two  persons 
who  could  do  anything  with  the  steel  pen  at  the  first  attempt.  These 
were  my  brother  Klemens,  and  a  Herr  Porner,  who  works  now  in  the 
establishment  of  Herr  Miiller  in  Karlsruhe.  All  others  have  had  to  strug- 
gle more  or  less  with  this  slight  trouble,  and  yet  it  does  not  demand  more 
than  a  few  days  of  patience  and  study. 

For  pen  work  one  must  not  be  too  particular  in  selecting  stones,  as  the 
less  perfect  ones  are  more  available  for  this  than  for  any  other  method. 
However,  the  general  rule  holds  good  here,  too,  that  the  purest  and 
hardest  stones  are  best. 

If  they  have  been  used  previously,  so  that  the  fatty  inks  have  pene- 
trated pretty  well,  they  still  need  not  be  ground  too  deeply,  but  it  will 
suffice  to  grind  them  merely  till  all  depressions  and  elevations  of  the 
previous  design  have  vanished.  They  may  be  ground  with  sand  or  pum- 
ice, so  long  as  they  are  made  smooth  so  that  no  roughness  can  be  per- 
ceived. The  smoother  and  finer  the  surface  is,  the  easier  will  it  be  to  work 
on  it  with  the  pen. 

To  design  well  on  stone  with  chemical  ink,  the  stone  must  be  pre- 
pared after  grinding  so  that  the  ink  shall  not  flow  and  spread.  Dissolve 
one  part  of  tallow  in  three  parts  of  oil  of  turpentine  and  coat  the  dry  stone 
very  quickly.  With  a  clean  rag  or  tissue  paper  wipe  it  at  once  so  thor- 
oughly that  the  coating  vanishes  again  almost  entirely,  leaving  only  a 
thin  film  that  can  be  easily  devoured  and  removed  when  the  etching  fluid 
is  applied  later.  It  is  well  to  do  this  some  hours  before  beginning  work 


1 68     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

on  the  stone,  partly  to  give  the  turpentine  odor  time  to  evaporate  and 
partly  because  it  is  easier  to  work  after  a  little  while  than  immediately 
after  coating  the  stone.  The  stone  can  be  prepared  far  in  advance,  even 
so  long  as  some  months  before  using.  In  that  case  it  is  necessary  merely 
to  clean  the  dust  away  with  a  cloth  or  fine  brush.  This  should  be  done 
anyway  at  intervals  during  the  work,  or  it  will  clog  the  pen. 

I  prefer  another  way  of  preparing  the  stone  for  designing,  because  it  is 
one  that  insures  the  stone  against  containing  any  hidden  preparation, 
which  can  easily  occur  in  grinding  owing  to  carelessness  or  uncleanliness 
on  the  part  of  the  workman,  especially  if  many  old  plates  are  being  re- 
ground,  when  the  gum  which  most  of  them  contain  from  previous  use 
will  mix  with  water  during  grinding  and  thus  form  a  partial  preparation 
of  the  stone. 

I  coat  the  plate  with  strong  soap-water  containing  many  soapy  parti- 
cles, and  dry  it  oflr  as  well  as  possible.  Now,  there  will  be  too  much  alkali 
on  the  plate,  which  will  not  be  good  for  fine  work.  I  pour  a  few  drops  of 
clean  water  on  the  stone,  make  it  quite  wet  with  this  and  dry  it  again 
thoroughly.  The  fat  of  the  soap  will  then  have  precipitated  itself  on  the 
stone  and  at  the  same  time  has  lost  all  alkali.  The  soap-water  must  not 
be  too  thin,  as  in  that  case  it  will  precipitate  too  much  fat  on  the  plate 
at  once  and  the  etching  fluid  will  not  be  able  later  to  destroy  it  properly. 
This  would  mean  the  total  destruction  of  the  design.  To  make  quite  sure, 
I  advise  beginners,  after  applying  soap-water  and  drying  it,  to  coat  the 
stone  with  the  tallow  and  turpentine  solution,  clean  it  quickly,  and  thus 
be  absolutely  assured  that  the  plate  is  thoroughly  prepared  for  the  design. 

It  must  not  be  imagined  that  this  preparation  for  work  is  not  very  un- 
portant.  I  am  convinced  that  less  depends  on  the  quality  of  the  ink  than 
on  a  surface  freed  from  all  acid  and  mucous  substances  and  provided  with 
a  suflScient  amount  of  fat. 

On  the  stone  thus  prepared  the  rough  design  may  be  done  with  lead 
crayon  or  red  chalk  or  by  tracings  or  transfers.  Any  surplus  of  lead  or 
red  chalk  would  make  trouble  during  the  succeeding  completion  of  the 
design  with  chemical  ink,  and  must  be  removed  carefully.  If  the  design 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     169 

has  been  laid  on  by  transfer,  the  resultant  fattiness  must  be  lightly  rubbed 
away  with  a  fine  sand,  but  not  so  as  to  injure  the  design. 

This  method,  of  first  drafting  the  design  on  paper  with  soft  chemical 
transfer  ink  and  then  transferring  to  stone,  offers  such  advantages  that 
it  pays  to  practice  it.  Care  must  be  taken  to  remove  all  surplus  of  color, 
as  otherwise  all  lines  that  should  not  appear  will  resist  the  etching  fluid 
and  gradually  show  again.  Those  who  fear  destruction  of  the  design  by 
the  use  of  sand  can  effect  the  same  purpose  by  printing  off  on  clean  waste 
paper  a  few  times,  or  the  design  may  be  printed  off  on  paper  before  being 
transferred,  thus  cleansing  it  of  surplus  fat. 

When  the  design  has  been  laid  on  the  stone  clean  and  strongly  with 
chemical  ink,  the  plate  can  be  etched  and  prepared,  but  not  till  the  whole 
design  is  perfectly  dry,  because  otherwise  it  cannot  resist  the  action  of  the 
fluid. 

The  parts  finished  first  usually  are  dry  long  before  the  entire  work  is 
finished.  A  trained  eye  can  recognize  the  proper  degree  of  dryness  from 
the  sheen,  which  varies  with  different  kinds  of  ink,  but  on  the  whole  is 
always  duller  when  the  design  is  dry  than  while  it  still  is  wet.  It  is  highly 
necessary  that  the  design  be  thoroughly  dry.  It  is  possible  to  keep  a  de- 
signed plate  for  years  without  etching  it,  so  long  as  it  is  protected  against 
injury. 

Etching  is  done  in  two  ways,  painting  the  fluid  on  and  pouring  it  on. 

The  former  method  is  less  circumstantial,  but  is  used  only  in  coarser 
work,  because  there  is  always  danger  of  damaging  delicate  parts  of  the 
design.  It  has  the  advantage,  however,  that  any  dirt  caused  by  correc- 
tions will  be  removed.  A  mixture  of  three  or  four  parts  of  water  with  one 
part  of  aquafortis  is  painted  over  the  stone  with  a  soft  brush  of  fox-  or 
badger-hair.  The  brush  must  be  dipped  continually  because  the  fluid 
loses  its  power. 

For  the  second  method  the  stone  is  placed  in  a  large  wooden  trough  or 
box,  provided  with  cross-pieces  to  keep  the  stone  from  the  bottom.  The 
acid,  thinned.down  with  thirty  or  forty  parts  of  water,  is  poured  over  it. 
It  is  rather  immaterial  how  much  one  may  dilute  the  acid.  Very  weak 


170     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

solutions  simply  mean  that  the  pouring  must  be  repeated  oftener.  The 
fluid  acts  on  stones  according  to  their  degree  of  hardness.  Regard  must 
be  had,  too,  to  the  delicacy  of  the  design,  very  fine  lines  being  unable  to 
resist  etching  that  does  not  afi'ect  coarse  lines. 

Only  slight  experience  is  needed  to  recognize  the  effect  of  the  acid.  By 
looking  at  the  stone  sidewise  and  against  the  light,  the  growing  elevation 
of  the  design  can  be  perceived  easily.  When  the  fatty  coating  caused  by 
the  soap  or  turpentine  wash  has  been  etched  away  completely,  and  the 
water  adheres  equally  everywhere,  the  stone  generally  is  sufficiently 
etched  to  be  ready  for  preparation  and  printing. 

For  the  sake  of  easier  printing,  and  also  so  that  future  grinding  and 
any  desired  improvement  may  be  done  on  the  stone,  there  should  be  a 
little  more  etching,  if  the  design  is  not  too  delicate.  But  if  the  design  is 
very  fine,  the  etching  absolutely  must  not  be  more  than  strictly  necessary, 
because  the  fine  lines  might  easily  be  eaten  away.  Coarser  designs  can 
bear  strong  etching  which  often  may  reach  the  depth  of  a  thick  paper. 
But  an  inordinate  amount  of  etching  is  not  to  be  recommended,  even  if 
the  design  can  bear  it,  because  the  edges  of  a  deeply  etched  line  are 
rough  and  take  the  color  so  strongly  that  it  works  into  the  cavities  and  is 
very  hard  to  get  out. 

When  the  stone  has  been  properly  etched,  clean  water  is  poured  over 
it  to  wash  away  the  free  acid.  Then  the  work  of  preparing  the  plate  with 
a  solution  of  gum  arable  in  four  or  five  parts  of  water  can  begin  at  once, 
or  the  stone  may  be  set  aside  to  dry,  thus  giving  the  finer  parts  of  the 
design,  that  may  have  been  most  afi^ected  by  the  acid,  time  to  adhere 
again  to  the  stone  and  soak  in,  which  can  occur  only  in  the  dry  state. 
This  is  entirely  unnecessary  with  most  pen  drawings,  but  with  brush  and 
especially  with  crayon  work  it  is  of  great  value. 

When  the  stone  has  been  prepared  with  gum,  it  is  set  aside  to  rest  for 
a  few  minutes.  Then  pour  a  few  drops  of  water  and  exactly  the  same 
quantity  of  oil  of  turpentine  on  it,  spread  it  in  all  directions  uniformly 
and  wipe  the  entire  design  ofi^  clean  with  a  woolen  rag.  Hard  ink,  espe- 
cially if  it  has  been  on  the  stone  for  some  time,  is  more  diflficult  to  remove 
and  a  little  more  turpentine  is  required. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     171 

The  stone  should  now  be  inked-in  at  once,  because  the  turpentine,  and 
with  it  all  the  fattiness,  is  liable  to  extensive  evaporation,  and  then  the 
stone  will  not  take  color  well. 

Inking-in  of  the  pen  designs  is  done  as  follows:  A  clean  linen  or  woolen 
rag  is  soaked  in  clean  water  and  wrung  out  till  it  is  damp  rather  than  wet. 
This  is  passed  over  the  whole  stone  so  that  it  becomes  a  little  wet  every- 
where. Immediately  after  this  dampening,  the  well-inked  printing-roller 
is  passed  to  and  fro  over  the  plate  several  times.  The  roller  must  be 
lifted  frequently  during  this  work  so  that  the  points  of  contact  change. 
To  lay  the  color  on  well  and  quickly,  the  roller  should  be  held  rather 
firmly  in  the  beginning,  well  pressed  down  and  used  with  a  certain  rub- 
bing motion  that  will  tend  to  lay  color  on  the  design  sideways,  so  to  speak. 
Then  the  roller  must  be  allowed  to  roll  to  and  fro  a  few  times  without 
much  pressure,  to  spread  the  color  and  take  away  any  surplus.  Do  not 
roll  too  long,  till  the  stone  dries,  because  then  it  will  take  dirt  immedi- 
ately. Should  this  occur,  it  must  be  wiped  instantly  with  the  damp  cloth 
till  it  is  clean  again.  If  dirt  is  left  too  long,  it  will  be  extremely  hard  to 
remove. 

Beginners  usually  wet  their  plates  excessively  to  counteract  this  trou- 
ble of  drying  during  the  inking-in.  This  results  in  wiping  away  fine 
strokes,  and  the  roller  gets  so  wet  that  no  good  impression  can  be  made 
till  it  has  been  dried  sufficiently  again.  For  this  reason  beginners  should 
not  use  bath-sponge,  because,  though  it  is  excellent,  it  leaves  too  much 
water  on  the  stone  unless  one  knows  exactly  how  to  use  it. 

Some  printers  put  a  little  gum,  others  a  little  aquafortis  into  the  water 
to  wet  the  stone.  Others  use  stale  beer,  or  even  urine.  I  consider  all  this 
unnecessary,  if  the  stone  has  been  prepared  correctly  and  the  color  is 
good. 

I  have  described  the  ink-rollers.  I  repeat  that  they  must  be  uniform, 
soft,  and  elastic. 

As  to  the  inking-in  color,  I  am  not  able  yet  to  lay  down  a  strict  rule. 
All  that  I  can  say,  as  a  result  of  my  experiments  and  experiences, 
is:  — 


172     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

(i)  The  firmer  the  varnish  in  a  color  is,  the  cleaner  is  the  work  of 
inking-in. 

(2)  The  same  is  true  the  more  lampblack  it  contains. 

But  in  both  cases  the  finer  parts  of  the  work  are  easily  rubbed  away, 
and  too  much  lampblack  makes  the  lines  squash  the  impression. 

(3)  The  toughness  or  fluidity  of  the  color  must  bear  correct  proportion 
to  the  power  of  the  press.  The  harder  the  varnish,  the  more  power  is 
required  in  the  press. 

(4)  Tough  varnish  is  not  so  liable  to  squash  under  pressure,  but  if  it 
has  once  been  pressed  into  the  spaces  between  the  lines  of  the  design  it  is 
not  readily  removed  by  the  mere  action  of  the  inking-roller,  and  this 
causes  more  and  more  smutting  and,  finally,  total  ruin  to  the  stone. 
Generally  when  a  tough  color  has  adhered  too  much,  there  is  no  other 
remedy  than  to  clean  the  stone  well  with  gum  and  oil  of  turpentine;  and 
this,  if  done  too  often,  damages  the  preparation  and  makes  the  impres- 
sions continuously  poorer. 

(5)  Soft  color  spreads  more  readily  under  pressure,  but  is  removable 
after  each  impression  by  merely  dampening  the  plate. 

(6)  In  using  soft  color,  the  paper  may  be  kept  damper  than  with  hard 
colors. 

(7)  Soft  as  well  as  hard  printing-color,  if  not  mixed  with  the  proper 
amount  of  varnish,  has  the  property  of  producing  poor,  sooty  impressions 
because  of  a  defect  called  shading.  Shading  is  caused  as  follows:  If  a 
drop  of  oil  falls  into  a  basin  of  clean  water,  a  part  of  the  oil  will  spread 
immediately.  Now,  a  stone  is  wetted  before  inking-in.  After  the  inking 
a  considerable  portion  of  dampness  remains.  If  the  ink  is  very  fluid,  it 
will  happen  often  that  a  part  of  it  will  spread  away  from  the  design  to  the 
surrounding  moisture,  producing  something  that  looks  like  a  shadow 
around  every  part  of  the  design.  This  does  not  occur  instantly,  as  in 
the  case  of  the  pure  oil,  but  gradually,  so  that  it  is  not  as  noticeable  when 
the  swifter  lever  press  is  used  as  with  the  slower  cylinder  press  or  if  the 
workmen  are  slow.  If  a  stone  can  be  dampened  so  exactly  that  with  the 
last  touch  of  the  ink-roller  the  last  vestige  of  dampness  is  removed,  this 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     173 

is  not  likely  to  happen.  But  it  is  difficult  to  arrive  at  such  accuracy.  It 
is  better  to  add  enough  lampblack  gradually  to  the  varnish  to  make  it 
lose  its  elasticity,  when  the  shading  effect  will  cease. 

(8)  While  shading  is  obviated  largely  through  enough  intermixture  of 
lampblack  or  other  coloring  substances  to  take  away  the  fluidity  of  the 
printing-color,  this  intermixture  will  cause  other  troubles.  The  finer 
places  will  not  take  the  harder  color  so  well,  whereas  at  other  places  too 
much  will  be  taken.  Also  an  impression  made  with  much  lampblack  will 
off-set  more  than  one  made  with  color  in  which  varnish  predominates. 
Neither  will  the  impressions  be  so  black.  Experience  teaches  that  a  print- 
ing-color that  has  less  lampblack  will  be  blacker,  because  the  sheen  of  the 
varnish  will  make  the  color  strong  and  lacquer-like.  I  have  tried  to  in- 
vent a  kind  of  varnish  that  would  not  be  so  liable  to  shading  and  thus 
would  permit  a  greater  fluidity  with  safety,  but  lack  of  time  has  prevented 
me  from  exhausting  the  possibilities.  I  am  sure,  however,  that  it  can  be 
done,  for  I  have  found  that  the  common  linseed  oil  varnish  can  be  made 
to  lose  its  property  of  shading  by  admixture  of  fatty  and  resinous  bodies. 
For  instance,  the  addition  of  a  slight  amount  of  Venetian  turpentine  per- 
mits a  greater  fluidity.  Very  good  is  the  following  composition:  Six  parts 
linseed  oil,  two  parts  tallow,  one  part  wax,  melted  together  and  thick- 
ened by  boiling  down  and  burning  like  the  ordinary  linseed  oil  varnish. 

(9)  The  inner  composition  of  the  stone  and  the  temperature  have  a 
considerable  effect  on  the  print  and  also  react  on  the  color.  A  stone, 
especially  a  porous  one,  has  much  less  internal  moisture  on  very  warm, 
dry  days.  Then  the  dampening  done  before  each  impression  often  evap- 
orates instantly  and  unequally,  so  that  it  is  difficult  to  ink-in  uniformly 
with  a  soft  color  or  one  lacking  varnish,  unless  one  wets  the  stone  unduly, 
which,  again,  injures  the  impressions.  In  that  case  one  must  use  a  color 
that  is  firmer  than  should  be  used  according  to  ordinary  rule.  It  is  also 
well,  before  printing  from  the  stone,  to  lay  it  in  clean  water  for  a  few 
hours,  or  overnight,  so  that  it  may  soak  in  enough  moisture  to  make  it 
easier  to  dampen. 

(10)  If  the  drying  of  the  printing-color  is  to  be  hastened,  as  is  neces- 


174     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

sarywith  some  work,  a  little  finely  powdered  mennig  may  be  mixed  in. 
Finely  powdered  litharge  of  silver  dries  still  better,  but  only  a  small 
amount  of  printing-color  must  be  mixed  with  it,  because  it  toughens 
within  an  hour.  It  will  not  keep  for  another  day,  because  the  mennig  will 
dissolve  after  a  while. 

In  printing  from  the  pen  design,  the  following  must  be  observed:  — 

Even  if  the  stone  has  been  inked-in  uniformly  and  well  with  a  good 

color,  the  impression  can  be  spoiled  in  various  ways:  if  the  paper  has  not 

been  dampened  as  required  by  the  nature  of  the  color  and  the  power  of 

the  press;  if  the  pressure  is  not  in  proportion  to  the  consistency  of  the 

color ;  if  the  scraper  is  not  even,  and  if  the  leather  is  not  properly  stretched . 

Therefore  care  must  be  taken  in  printing  pen  designs:  — 

(i)  The  paper  must  not  touch  the  inked  design  till  the  scraper  forces 

it  down.  It  is  not  advisable  to  lay  the  paper  directly  on  the  stone.    It 

should  be  in  the  printing-frame,  which,  as  already  described,  should  be 

so  arranged  that  it  will  keep  the  paper  at  least  one  fourth  inch  away  from 

the  stone. 

(2)  The  proper  dampening  of  the  paper  is  not  a  matter  of  the  greatest 
importance  in  pen  designs,  so  long  as  it  is  not  too  wet,  in  which  case  it 
causes  squashed  impressions,  does  not  take  color  uniformly,  and,  if  the 
printing-color  is  tough,  will  stick  to  the  stone.  In  general,  the  rule  holds 
good  that  the  degree  of  dampening  must  be  in  proportion  to  the  firmness 
of  the  varnish,  and  that  a  softer  varnish  permits  increased  dampening. 
Dampening  is  done  chiefly  to  soften  the  paper,  and  the  qualities  of  the 
paper  dictate  the  amount  necessary  to  a  large  extent. 

(3)  The  tension  of  the  press  must  be  more  powerful  with  hard  printing- 
color  and  carefully  graduated  with  soft  color.  Besides  this,  it  depends  — 

(4)  On  the  structure  of  the  scraper.  If  it  is  not  absolutely  uniform  and 
well  fitted  to  the  stone,  more  power  is  needed.  Thus  the  defect  often  is 
corrected;  but  this  may  make  the  color  squash  and  spread  in  other  spots, 
therefore  it  always  is  better  to  correct  any  defects  in  the  scraper.  The 
sharper  the  scraper  is,  the  clearer  are  the  impressions,  because  then  the 
whole  force  of  the  pressure  concentrates  on  the  smallest  area.  But  usually 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      175 

the  scraper  soon  becomes  dull,  and  then  the  press  must  have  more 
power. 

(5)  Insufficient  tension  of  the  leather  also  may  produce  poor  impres- 
sions, especially  if  the  color  is  soft  and  the  paper  very  wet.  Therefore  as 
soon  as  impressions  appear  blurred  and  squashed,  the  leather  should  be 
tautened  and  well  lubricated  with  tallow. 

Now  we  come  to  an  important  matter,  namely,  the  correction  of  errors. 
It  does  not  happen  often  that  a  drawing  or  inscription  can  be  made 
entirely  without  error,  and  it  would  be  a  great  imperfection  in  lithography 
if  these  mistakes  could  not  be  corrected  at  once. 

Errors  may  be  observed  before  etching  or  afterward.  Different  ways 
of  making  corrections  are  required. 

It  is  very  easy  to  make  corrections  before  etching.  If  the  error  is 
observed  as  soon  as  it  is  made,  while  the  ink  still  is  wet,  it  may  be  cor- 
rected by  merely  wiping  out  the  defect  with  the  finger.  If  the  ink  is  dry, 
oil  of  turpentine  is  required.  In  each  case  the  ink  must  be  well  removed 
so  that  it  will  not  resist  the  etching  fluid  later.  If  only  tiny  spots  are 
defective  they  can  be  corrected  by  delicate  use  of  a  sharp  eraser.  Defects 
that  need  merely  to  be  destroyed  without  drawing  anything  else  in  their 
place  may  be  scraped  off  with  a  knife  or  with  pumice  stone. 

After  the  plate  is  etched,  errors  demand  treatments  that  differ  accord- 
ing to  whether  a  defect  or  blemish  is  merely  to  be  removed,  whether 
something  else  is  to  be  drawn  in  place  of  the  removed  part,  or  if  some- 
thing has  been  forgotten  and  is  to  be  added.  The  area  of  the  correction 
also  makes  a  difference. 

If  it  is  only  a  matter  of  removing  small  defects  or  places,  delicate 
erasure  will  do.  The  same,  or  polishing  with  pumice,  is  done  if  the  area  is 
larger.  Then  the  corrected  spots  must  be  coated  with  a  mixture  of  gum 
and  aquafortis,  using  a  soft  brush  very  carefully  that  it  may  not  touch 
any  of  the  sound  places. 

If  something  new  is  to  be  drawn  in,  the  process  is  different.  Ink-in  the 
stone  very  clean,  and  coat  it  with  gum  and  water  that  is  very  thin  and 
delicate.  Let  it  dry.  Then  scrape  the  defective  places  away  very  care- 


176     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

fully  or  grind  them  away  by  rubbing  with  pumice  stone.  Coat  the  spots 
cautiously  with  soap-water  or  oil  of  turpentine  and  clean  off  again  as 
thoroughly  as  possible.  (This  coating  is  not  necessary  in  the  case  of  a  few 
isolated  small  lines  or  points.)  Now  draw  in  your  new  design  with  chem- 
ical ink,  and  as  soon  as  this  is  dry,  etch  the  corrections  carefully  with  a 
small  brush  and  then  prepare  with  gum. 

The  third  case,  where  something  has  been  forgotten,  is  treated  almost 
the  same  way.  If  it  is  only  a  very  small  thing,  the  stone  need  merely  be 
scraped  carefully.  Then  the  drawing  may  be  put  in,  preferably  with  a 
thicker  ink.  If  the  area  is  large,  the  stone  must  be  ground  where  the 
design  is  to  be  added,  coated  with  soap-water  or  oil  of  turpentine,  and 
then  treated  as  explained  before. 

Wlien  the  stone  has  been  corrected  and  prepared  for  printing,  it  can 
be  used  at  once  or  set  aside  for  some  length  of  time.  In  the  latter  case  it 
should  be  inked  with  a  firm  color  and  coated  delicately  with  gum  solu- 
tion. Then  it  can  be  held  as  long  as  desired.  Coating  with  gum  solution 
is  advisable  not  merely  for  storing  away,  but  for  every  interruption  of 
printing  that  lasts  more  than  five  minutes. 

If  a  stone  has  stood  longer  than  a  day  without  being  freshly  inked,  it 
must  be  wiped  off  first  of  all  with  gum  solution  and  oil  of  turpentine,  that 
it  may  take  the  color  well,  so  that  the  very  first  impression  may  be  per- 
fect. During  the  progress  of  printing,  the  following  points  are  important: 
Uniform  distribution  of  water,  the  same  of  printing-color,  frequent  ink- 
ing of  the  inking-roller,  and  the  very  greatest  speed  possible. 

In  the  main  points  the  brush  process  is  like  that  of  the  pen.  The  chief 
difference  is  that  it  is  not  possible  to  make  the  brush  strokes  as  strong 
as  those  with  the  pen.  Therefore,  brush  work  does  not  resist  etching  so 
well  and  must  not  be  treated  too  powerfully.  Much  depends  on  the  treat- 
ment of  the  brush  and  the  consistency  of  the  ink.  The  brush  does  not 
permit  such  a  flow  of  ink  as  does  the  pen,  and  generally  requires  one  that 
is  more  fluid.  A  good  brush  ink  is  made  as  follows:  — 

Mix  two  parts  of  pure  white  wax  and  one  part  of  good  tallow  soap  into 
a  mass  not  larger  than  a  hazel  nut.   The  ink  loses  its  good  properties 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     177 

quickly  and  should  be  made  fresh  day  by  day.  Mix  the  two  materials 
with  a  thick  knife  on  a  lukewarm  (but  positively  not  warm)  stone,  sepa- 
rate into  small  parts  and  moisten  with  rain  water.  As  soon  as  the  water 
has  softened  the  mass  a  trifle,  add  as  much  lampblack  as  will  lie  on  two 
knife  points  and  mix  the  whole  mass  together  once  more  till  it  is  thor- 
oughly mixed  and  quite  firm.  When  required,  a  bit  of  this  is  rubbed  down 
in  a  clean  saucer  with  rain  water. 

As  a  better  flow  of  ink  is  needed  for  brush  work  than  for  pen  work,  it  is 
evident  that  it  would  not  be  requisite  to  treat  the  stone  with  soap-water 
and  oil  of  turpentine,  as  for  pen  work.  However,  it  often  pays  to  make 
certain  fine  lines  with  the  pen,  and  therefore  it  is  better  to  combine  both 
processes  and  prepare  the  stone  as  for  pen  work.  It  is  well,  however,  after 
drying  the  coating,  to  rub  it  very  gently  with  dry  sand,  which  will  not 
make  the  pen  strokes  flow  to  any  extent  and  still  will  prepare  the  stone 
so  that  it  will  take  the  brush  strokes  well  and  not  make  necessary  such 
strong  etching. 

If  a  brush  design  is  to  be  etched  in  high  relief,  for  ease  in  printing  or  for 
durability,  it  must  be  etched  only  to  the  extent  absolutely  required  at 
first.  Then  it  must  be  prepared  with  gum  and  inked-in  with  good  acid- 
proof  color.  Set  it  aside  for  a  while,  that  the  color  may  concentrate  so 
that  it  will  resist  the  acid  well,  and  then  etch  the  stone  to  the  desired 
degree.  After  etching,  wash  with  water,  coat  with  gum  and  put  aside  to 
dry.  Owing  to  this  latter  procedure  any  fine  parts  that  may  have  been 
unduly  affected  by  the  acid  will  adhere  to  the  plate  anew  and  it  can  be 
printed  then  like  a  pen  design. 

If  pen  and  brush  work  are  to  be  combined  on  a  stone,  and  absolute 
certainty  is  desired,  that  even  the  very  finest  lines  shall  not  suffer  from 
etching,  the  following  process  will  serve :  — 

Over  the  cleanly  ground  plate  pour  a  solution  of  weakened  but  pure 
aquafortis,  about  forty  parts  of  water  to  one  part  of  aquafortis.  Repeat 
this  several  times.  Then  pour  a  great  deal  of  water  over  the  stone,  to 
wash  off  all  acid,  and  let  it  dry.  Pen  as  well  as  brush  work  is  easy  on  such 
a  stone,  by  using  the  proper  ink  for  each  method.  When  the  work  is 


178     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

finished  and  dry,  the  stone  is  merely  coated  with  gum  solution.  After  a 
few  minutes  it  can  be  inked-in  with  acid-proof  ink  and  treated  as  de- 
scribed before. 

n 

THE  CRAYON  METHOD 

The  fat  of  the  chemical  ink  penetrates  the  stone  in  dry  form  as  well  as 
in  fluid  form,  and  makes  the  plate  receptive  to  printing-color.  If  the  dry 
ink  is  cut  into  long  pieces  and  sharpened,  it  can  be  used  much  like  lead  or 
black  crayon.  If  the  stone  is  ground  very  smooth,  the  work  can  be  made 
quite  fine  and  resembles  that  done  with  fluid  ink.  The  crayon,  however, 
wears  away  too  quickly.  If  the  stone  is  ground  rough,  so  that  instead  of 
a  polished  surface  it  has  one  resembling  rough  paper,  the  crayon  work 
appears  as  a  mass  of  dots  that  are  coarser  or  finer  according  to  pressure 
with  the  crayon,  and  produce  an  effect  similar  to  crayon  designs  on  paper. 
As  almost  every  artist  and  painter  knows  how  to  use  crayon,  no  particu- 
lar practice  is  required  for  working  on  stone,  and  there  are  no  obstacles 
such  as  the  difficulty  of  using  the  steel  pen. 

That  crayon  work  on  stone  is  capable  of  high  perfection,  and  that  it 
can  represent  the  essentials  of  a  painting  in  a  manner  scarcely  to  be 
excelled  by  the  best  copper-plate  engraver,  has  been  demonstrated  by 
many  successful  productions.  Add  to  this  that  in  no  other  style  can  one 
work  equally  fast,  either  on  copper  or  stone,  and  we  see  that  the  crayon 
method  is  a  genuine  advantage  for  the  art. 

For  crayon  work  the  stones  must  be  uniform  and  hard.  They  must 
either  be  new,  or,  if  they  have  been  used,  they  must  be  ground  so  thor- 
oughly that  all  traces  of  fat  are  destroyed  and  removed  absolutely  to  a 
degree  where  it  is  certain  that  they  will  not  appear  again  and  take  color, 
even  if  the  stone  is  etched  only  lightly.  As  soon  as  the  plates  have  been 
ground  true,  they  must  be  grained  by  strewing  some  fine  sand  or  pow- 
dered sandstone  on  them  and  rubbing  in  all  directions  with  a  small  piece 
of  limestone.  The  work  can  be  done  dry  or  wet.  Soap-water  is  best.  It 
gives  the  stone  a  handsome  grain.    Practice  is  demanded  to  get  good 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     179 

results  without  scratching  the  stone.  The  artist  must  decide  for  himself 
what  grain  he  needs.  I  think  that  it  would  be  good  if  the  artist  himself 
were  to  grain  the  stone  in  varying  degrees  according  to  the  need  of  his 
design.  For  instance,  a  coarser  grain  might  be  good  for  foregrounds. 

As  soon  as  the  stone  has  been  grained,  it  must  be  cleansed  perfectly 
from  dust  and  dirt.  It  is  best  to  pour  clean  water  over  it  and  wash  it 
with  a  clean  rag.  The  dust  and  sand  must  all  be  removed,  otherwise  they 
will  not  let  the  crayon  reach  the  stone  where  it  is  used  delicately. 

When  the  design  is  finished,  it  should  be  set  aside  for  a  day,  that  it  may 
take  good  hold  of  the  stone.  It  does  no  harm  to  let  plates  rest  for  years 
before  etching.  Etching  must  be  done  by  pouring.  Painting  the  etching 
fluid  on  is  dangerous  because  of  the  danger  of  taking  away  fine  spots. 
About  one  hundred  parts  of  water  are  used  to  one  part  of  aquafortis. 
Everything  depends  on  not  etching  a  bit  more  than  necessary.  It  is  best 
to  etch  the  coarser  parts  specially  with  a  small  brush  and  stronger  etch- 
ing solution,  and  it  is  very  good  to  wash  the  stone  with  clean  water  after 
etching  and  let  it  dry  completely  before  coating  with  gum. 

When  the  stone  has  been  prepared,  it  should  not  be  cleansed  at  once 
with  oil  of  turpentine,  but  should  be  inked-in  first  with  a  light  printing- 
color.  Only  after  it  has  taken  this  well  should  it  be  cleansed  of  the 
crayon  and  treated  to  a  firmer  color.  In  the  first  inking-in  there  should 
be  very  little  pressure  with  the  sponge  or  wet  cloth  when  dampening  it, 
as  the  lightest  parts  of  the  design  are  easily  rubbed  away  before  they 
have  taken  color.  If  such  parts  should  vanish,  the  easiest  way  to  restore 
them  is  as  follows :  — 

Coat  the  plate  with  gum  solution  and  wipe  with  a  clean  dry  cloth  till  it 
is  perfectly  dry.  Then  take  a  flat,  knife-like  instrument  of  steel,  which  is 
cleanly  ground  so  that  it  has  no  nicks  or  other  defects  that  might  injure 
the  stone.  Scrape  with  moderate  pressure  to  and  fro  over  the  defective 
places,  but  only  so  that  it  touches  the  elevated  points  and  not  the  surface 
of  the  stone  itself.  Smear  a  little  fat,  such  as  linseed  oil  varnish,  over  it 
and  wash  this  away  again  instantly  with  gum  solution.  Generally  the 
parts  all  reappear  very  nicely  when  the  stone  is  inked-in  again. 


i8o     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

A  second  kind  of  correction  is  as  follows:  Ink  the  stone  with  firm 
color,  wash  it  well  with  plenty  of  pure  water  and  let  it  dry.  Now  re- 
draw the  lost  places  with  crayon. 

Printing  crayon  work  is  the  most  difficult  of  all  lithography,  but  can 
be  done  perfectly  if  all  necessary  precautions  are  taken.  These  are 
mainly:  {a)  proper  dampening  of  the  paper;  {b)  perfect  dampening  of  the 
stone ;  —  too  much  meaning  that  the  fine  points  will  not  take  color  well, 
too  little  making  the  stone  smut  easily;  {c)  good  stretching  of  the  leather, 
industrious  lubrication,  and  an  underlay  of  taff^eta;  {d)  a  good,  finely 
mixed  inking-color  that  will  not  shade  off  in  printing  and  yet  does  not  con- 
tain too  much  lampblack;  {e)  soft  and  well-dried  ink-rollers;  (/)  proper 
tension  of  the  press;  {g)  utmost  possible  speed  in  printing.  The  latter 
aids  enormously,  because  the  stone  does  not  get  so  much  time  to  dry  out. 

Aside  from  the  spreading  and  running-together  of  the  darker  parts,  one 
of  the  commonest  faults  of  crayon  work  is  that  it  is  very  liable  to  get  a 
tone,  which  spreads  over  the  whole  design  like  a  veil;  or  that  the  designs 
lose  their  firmness  and  appear  "monotonic"  because  the  shadings  spread 
and  thicken.  The  first  fault  comes  from  weak  etching  or  from  oil  that  was 
rancid  when  it  was  used  to  prepare  the  varnish.  The  latter  fault  makes 
the  color  adhere  and  smut  the  stone.  The  same  fault  is  developed  if  the 
printing-color  contains  soap,  which  some  printers  mix  into  it  for  better 
adherence.  It  can  occur  also  if  the  stone  has  lost  its  preparation  owing  to 
frequent  cleansing  and  strong  rubbing  with  a  dry  rag  that  is  inky.  Even 
strong  rubbing  with  clean  water  can  cause  it  if  the  rag  contains  fats. 

As  to  the  "monotonic"  effect,  it  is  frequent,  and  I  have  learned  that  it 
can  be  caused  in  two  ways,  namely,  if  the  color  is  squashed  continually 
during  the  print,  which  makes  the  stone  sooty;  or  if  the  color  spreads,  as, 
for  instance,  during  the  night  or  during  the  noonday  rest.  The  stone  is 
prepared  only  on  the  surface.  In  the  pen  style,  all  lines  are  prepared  on 
the  sides  also,  so  that  they  cannot  spread  because  they  are  considerably 
more  elevated  than  the  crayon  designs. 

If  a  crayon  design  dries  after  printing  and  is  not  coated  properly  with 
gum,  the  color  is  liable  to  spread  away  from  the  design  and  give  the  plate 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      i8i 

the  before-mentioned  tone.  Even  if  it  is  coated  with  gum,  the  color  will 
spread,  at  least  in  the  inner  parts  of  the  stone ;  and  as  soon  as  the  very 
thin  surface  has  been  at  all  wiped  away  by  rough  usage,  the  underlying 
fattiness  will  appear  gradually,  and  begin  to  take  color. 

Both  faults  of  crayon  work,  namely,  the  taking  of  tone  and  the  devel- 
opment of  a  "monotonic  "  condition,  can  be  remedied  by  inking  the  plate 
for  a  while  with  a  firmer  color.  If  this  does  not  help,  the  following  must 
be  resorted  to:  Ink  in  the  plate  as  well  as  possible,  lay  it  in  the  etching- 
trough  and  pour  over  it  very  weak  aquafortis  once  or  twice.  Then  wash 
it  with  pure  water  and  paint  the  gum  solution  over  it.  The  etching  must 
be  done  with  great  caution,  with  a  solution  so  weak  that  the  acid  is 
scarcely  perceptible.  If  the  plate  is  to  be  saved  at  all  without  extensive 
corrections  and  re-drawing,  this  is  the  best  way.  If  it  is  done  correctly,  it 
harms  the  design  so  little  that  I  advise  it  even  when  the  plate  looks  quite 
well,  but  has  been  standing  very  long  after  the  first  printing. 

I  have  etched  several  crayon  designs  over  again,  and  rather  extensively, 
to  make  them  more  durable  and  facilitate  printing,  and  with  good  suc- 
cess. This  gives  the  further  advantage  that  corrections  can  be  made  at 
the  same  time. 

The  correction  of  crayon  designs,  that  have  been  etched  already  and 
used  for  printing,  always  has  been  so  difficult  a  task  that  few  have  suc- 
ceeded. This  has  led  me  to  give  the  matter  my  best  attention;  and  I  hope 
that  the  following  rules,  based  on  many  experiments,  will  show  the  way, 
at  least,  even  if  they  do  not  produce  absolute  results. 

When  a  copper-plate  engraver  has  partially  finished  his  plate,  he  can 
have  a  proof  pulled  to  enable  him  to  study  his  work.  Then  he  can  make 
corrections  as  he  pleases,  —  an  advantage  that  the  stone  worker  has 
lacked  hitherto. 

To  produce  an  impression  that  shall  be  faithful  to  all  the  beauties  of  a 
crayon  design  is  a  matter  dependent  on  so  many  trivial  details  that  of  the 
many  hundred  crayon  designs  that  have  been  produced  by  lithographers 
since  the  origin  of  the  art,  hardly  one  has  realized  the  designer's  hopes 
and  ambitions.  The  commonest  fault  is  that  the  more  delicate  parts  of 


i82     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

the  design  print  too  light  and  the  heavier  ones  too  dark,  thus  destroying 
the  balance  of  tones.  The  lightening  occurs  because  the  finest  parts  of  the 
design  have  lost  their  power  of  taking  printing-color.  The  darkening 
occurs  because  the  closely  shaded  parts  flow  together,  either  because  the 
etching  has  not  made  enough  white  space  between  the  points  and  lines  or 
because  they  are  squashed  in  the  pressure  of  printing. 

From  this,  two  other  faults  may  arise,  that  become  visible  after  inking- 
in  the  plate:  The  first  is  the  appearance  of  white  dots,  sometimes  pretty 
large.  The  second  is  that  black  dots  and  smut-marks  appear. 

The  white  dots  are  caused  by  speaking  during  the  work,  and  thus 
dropping  spittle  on  the  plate.  If  the  spittle  is  mucous,  the  plate  covers 
itself  there  with  a  fine  crust  that  resists  the  chemical  crayon  so  that  it 
does  not  soak  into  the  stone  and  is  wiped  away  by  the  inking-in.  If  the 
spittle  is  fatty,  —  for  instance,  if  one  has  eaten  anything  greasy,  —  the 
dots  that  appear  will  be  black.  The  same  results  from  touching  the  plate 
with  fatty  hands.  Sometimes  a  whole  picture  of  the  fingers  and  skin  will 
appear  on  the  impression. 

Let  us  suppose  that  after  inking-in,  a  plate  shows  all  these  faults:  the 
finest  shadings  vanished  entirely,  the  darker  places  run  together,  white 
and  black  dots  and  smut-marks  so  that  the  plate  has  become  useless  in 
every  respect.  Can  this  be  remedied.?  If  so,  how? 

I  answer  that  it  can  be  remedied  in  every  point;  but  that  the  artist 
himself  must  decide  if  it  will  not  pay  better  to  do  the  whole  design  anew. 

The  second  question  I  answer  as  follows :  — 

Before  everything  else,  it  is  necessary  to  remove  all  that  should  not  be 
on  the  stone,  all  smut-marks  and  black  dots;  and  where  the  design  has 
darkened,  white  points  or  lights  must  be  graved-in.  To  accomplish  this, 
the  stone  is  inked-in  first  with  a  firm  acid-proof  color,  and  over  this  with 
a  lighter  one.  Then  erase  or  grind  away  the  dirt  that  is  outside  of  the 
design  and  that  would  dirty  the  margin  of  the  printing-paper.  No  erasing 
or  grinding  must  be  done  within  the  design  itself  because  then  the  grain 
would  be  destroyed  and  the  necessary  drawing  could  not  be  done  as  it 
should  be.  Therefore  the  faulty  parts  must  be  removed  by  engraving, 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     183 

with  a  more  or  less  sharp  needle  of  good  steel,  so  that  what  remains  looks 
quite  like  a  good  grain.  A  little  practice  will  show  that  this  work  is  not  at 
all  difficult  and  can  be  done  quickly.  Places  that  have  run  together  can 
be  cleared  and  made  transparent  and  clean  in  a  few  minutes.  If  certain 
points  have  become  too  large,  they  can  be  corrected  by  engraving  a  white 
point  in  their  centre  or  by  engraving  a  line  through  them. 

Here  I  must  note  that  parts  of  crayon  designs  thicken  sometimes 
because  the  crayon  has  slipped  in  drawing,  without  leaving  traces 
perceptible  at  the  time.  If  the  etching  is  weak,  it  may  happen  easily 
that  this  place  takes  printing-color.  Skillful  engraving  may  not  only 
correct  the  defect,  but  actually  gives  the  design  a  beautiful  tone  and 
power  such  as  cannot  be  easily  produced  by  the  crayon  itself. 

When  the  plate  has  been  cleansed  thus  of  all  surplus  and  blemishes, 
weak  aquafortis  is  poured  over  it  several  times  and  then  it  is  coated  with 
gum.  After  a  few  minutes  it  is  inked-in  with  fairly  firm  color.  Then  it 
will  be  seen  that  the  design  is  clean,  but  that  all  the  parts  that  were  too 
light  are  not  darker,  but  perhaps  even  lighter,  having  been  affected 
by  the  etching.  To  remedy  this,  coat  the  stone  with  gum  solution  and 
then  wipe  it  off  with  a  dry  clean  rag  so  thoroughly  that  only  a  thin  film  of 
gum  remains  behind.  To  judge  this  better,  it  is  well  to  mix  a  little  red 
chalk  with  the  gum.  When  the  plate  is  wholly  dry,  take  a  knife-like 
tool  of  steel  as  described  before,  and  scrape  the  defective  parts  under 
moderate  pressure,  without  injuring  the  elevated  points  of  the  design. 
Great  care  must  be  taken  during  this  process  to  let  no  moisture,  not  even 
the  breath,  touch  the  stone,  because  that  would  produce  the  very  opposite 
of  what  is  aimed  at.  When  all  faulty  places  have  been  treated,  a  little 
tallow  or  linseed  oil  is  smeared  over  the  plate  and  then  washed  away 
well  but  gendy  with  thin  gum  and  water.  If  this  manipulation  has 
been  done  accurately,  the  lost  parts  of  the  design  will  appear  when  the 
plate  is  inked  with  a  somewhat  softer  color. 

Those  who  fear  that  they  do  not  possess  the  skill  necessary  for  this 
rubbing-up  of  the  defective  parts  may  attain  the  object  by  re-draw- 
ing them.  The  stone  must  be  washed  off  first  with  a  great  deal  of  very 


1 84     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

pure  water  and  the  crayon  must  contain  much  soap.  This  kind  of  cor- 
rection must  be  finished  as  quickly  as  possible  and  the  stone  should  not 
be  set  aside  for  any  length  of  time  without  a  gum  coating.  If  the  cor- 
rections are  extensive,  it  is  better  first  to  ink  the  stone  well  with  acid- 
proof  color  and  then  to  wash  it  in  pure  water  and  let  it  dry.  Then  if  it 
is  inked-in  after  the  design  is  finished,  and  if  weak  aquafortis  is  poured 
over  it  and  it  is  prepared  with  gum,  it  will  keep  for  several  montlis. 

Slight  blemishes,  white  specks,  etc.,  can  best  be  corrected  by  gentle 
touching-up  with  crayon  during  the  proof-printing  on  the  wet  plate. 
It  is  understood,  of  course,  that  one  can  also  work  with  pen  or  brush 
in  a  crayon  design  that  has  been  already  etched.  Parts  tliat  are  too 
dark  can  be  made  lighter  by  passing  over  them  a  few  times  with  a  brush 
dipped  in  weak  aquafortis  and  then  re-coating  with  gum. 

These  are  about  the  best  ways  for  correcting  a  crayon  design  that 
proves  after  etching  to  be  imperfect. 

I  close  with  the  following:  — 

(i)  The  tanners  of  Munich  manufacture  an  inking-ball,  made  espe- 
cially for  printing,  of  sheepskin,  such  as  I  could  not  obtain  in  other 
places,  like  London,  OlTenbach,  and  Vienna.  It  is  not  white  like  alum- 
dressed  leather,  but  yellowish,  and  the  oil  has  not  been  completely 
washed  out.  I  have  had  dogskin  and  thin  calfskin  worked  in  the  same 
way  and  have  found  them  even  better,  because  of  their  greater  durabil- 
ity. If  a  roller  is  covered  with  this  leather,  so  that  the  side  that  was  hairy 
comes  outermost  (not  innermost  as  many  do),  it  develops  a  decided 
property  of  taking-on  color,  probably  because  of  its  smoothness  and 
elasticity.  This  aids  much  in  spreading  the  color  uniformly  over  the 
stone.  The  property  is  increased  if  the  roller  is  dampened  slightly  before 
being  inked ;  but  on  the  contrary,  if  the  stone  is  kept  too  wet,  the  con- 
stant moisture  will  gradually  prepare  the  roller,  so  to  speak,  and  it  will 
take  less  color  and  let  it  go  quickly,  thus  inking  the  stone  badly. 

If  a  roller  has  been  used  a  long  time,  it  loses  its  elasticity  and  soft- 
ness and  becomes  useless  for  fine  work.  Still  worse  is  a  roller  that  has 
hardened  from  the  drying  of  the  ink.  It  is  surprising  to  see  what  a  dif- 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE      185 

ference  it  makes  if  one  has  worked  for  a  time  with  a  poor  roller  and  then 
replaces  it  with  a  good  one.  It  is  almost  impossible  to  believe  that  the 
new  impressions  come  from  the  same  stone.  I  am  inclined,  therefore, 
to  believe  that  the  quality  of  the  ink-roller  has  more  effect  on  good  im- 
pressions of  crayon  and  fine  pen  work  than  even  the  quality  of  the  print- 
ing-color. 

As  stated,  it  is  well  to  change  rollers  frequently,  and  it  is  wise  to  clean 
them  with  linseed  oil  or  butter  after  use  to  keep  them  soft  and  tender. 
In  working  on  crayon  designs  of  superior  value  I  advise  the  use  of  new 
rollers. 

(2)  It  has  been  remarked  before  that  the  color  of  the  stone  often 
deceives  the  artist  as  to  the  values  and  proportions  of  his  work  and  that 
the  designs  always  look  better  on  the  soft-colored  stone  than  they  do 
on  the  glaring  white  paper.  This  observation  led  to  printing  on  paper 
tinted  like  the  stone,  and  the  results  fulfilled  expectations.  There  were 
difficulties  however.  The  very  best  quality  of  this  paper  is  extremely  dear, 
and  other  qualities  had  the  property  of  dirtying  the  stone,  on  account 
of  the  coloring-matter  used  for  tinting  them.  Therefore  the  attempt 
was  made  t<j^  print  the  design  on  white  paper  and  to  color  it  afterwards. 
Here,  too,  there  arose  many  inconveniences,  so  that  at  last  there  came 
the  thought  of  laying  a  yellow  tint  over  the  impression  by  means  of  a 
second  printing.  This  method  proved  to  be  not  only  the  most  economi- 
cal and  quick,  but  it  had  the  further  advantage  that  the  margins  of  the 
paper  could  be  left  white,  thus  enhancing  the  value  of  the  design.  Hardly 
had  it  been  used  with  success  a  few  times  before  Herr  Piloty  conceived 
the  idea  of  printing  the  high  lights  into  the  design  with  white  printing- 
color,  so  that  the  impressions  would  resemble  actual  drawings.  My 
experiments  toward  that  end  did  not  result  satisfactorily,  because  no 
white  oil  color  will  print  well  enough;  and  I  proposed  that  the  high  lights 
be  engraved  into  the  tint  plate  and  thus  permit  the  original  white  of  the 
paper  to  show.  So  there  came  that  kind  of  crayon  impression  with  one 
or  more  tint  plates,  which  has  become  so  popular  that  various  art  con- 
noisseurs hold  it  to  be  the  triumph  of  the  lithographic  art. 


i86    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

To  make  and  print  these  tone  plates,  I  have  thought  out  many  ways; 
but  as  I  am  sure  that  they  will  suggest  themselves  to  those  who  have 
grasped  my  text-book,  I  will  describe  only  the  best  of  them  all. 

Take  a  stone  of  good  average  quality,  the  best  not  being  essential, 
and  grind  it  as  for  crayon  work  with  a  grain  not  too  coarse.  When  it  is 
clean  and  dry,  cover  it  uniformly  with  the  following  chemical  ink,  which 
must  be  laid  on  so  thickly  that  it  surely  will  resist  the  aquafortis  suffi- 
ciently, yet  not  so  very  thickly  that  it  will  hinder  the  drawing-in  of  the 
lights  later  on. 

The  chemical  ink  for  use  on  the  tone  plates  is  made  of  four  parts 
wax,  one  part  soap,  and  two  parts  vermilion.  The  two  first  materials 
are  melted  in  a  clean  vessel  over  a  moderate  fire  and  then  the  vermilion 
is  stirred  in. 

A  piece  of  ink  as  large  as  a  hazel  nut  is  rubbed  down  in  a  clean  coffee 
cup  and  then  dissolved  in  rain  water  till  it  is  just  fluid  enough  to  lie 
evenly  and  nicely  on  the  plate  when  applied  with  a  soft  brush. 

When  the  stone  thus  has  been  painted  red,  it  must  be  permitted  to 
dry  thoroughly.  When  it  is  dry,  a  strong  impression  of  the  design  is 
made  on  sized  but  well-dampened  paper  with  a  printing-coler  rather  soft 
than  firm.  Before  the  paper  has  a  chance  to  dry  and  thus  to  shrink,  the  red 
stone  is  placed  in  the  press  and  the  impression  is  laid  on  it  face  down. 
Use  moderate  pressure.  The  drawing  will  transfer  itself  to  the  red  sur- 
face, but  the  paper  will  stick.  Wet  it  with  weak  aquafortis  till  it  is  com- 
pletely softened  and  permits  itself  to  be  removed.  Care  must  be  taken 
not  to  spoil  the  drawing  by  violent  wiping  and  rubbing. 

This  method  is  easier  if  a  special  transfer  paper  is  used.  Coat  well- 
sized,  very  clean  paper  with  a  thin  paste  of  starch  such  as  laundresses 
use  for  stiffening  linen.  This  paper  must  not  be  dampened  very  much, 
because  then  it  will  not  take  the  impression  well.  It  also  is  removed 
from  the  tone  plate  by  washing  with  weak  aquafortis  and  it  yields  very 
easily,  because  the  paste  lets  go  of  the  color  readily. 

When  the  design  has  been  transferred  to  the  tone  plate,  take  good  iron 
instruments  and  remove  the  wax  surface  wherever  the  high  lights  are 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     187 

desired.  As  the  stone  is  ground  rough,  the  scraping  will  produce  only 
small  specks  at  first,  because  the  instrument  will  touch  only  the  relief 
points.  The  more  the  scraping  proceeds,  the  deeper  it  will  go,  till  at 
last  one  reaches  the  bottom  of  the  coating  and  thus  obtains  a  white 
light.  Experts  can  so  manipulate  the  tint  plates  that  the  lights  will  be 
graduated  from  die  softest  to  the  most  glaring. 

As  soon  as  the  lights  are  drawn  in,  the  margins  of  the  drawing  are 
scraped  the  same  way.  Then  the  plate  is  treated  to  several  washings  of 
pretty  strong  aquafortis,  about  twenty  parts  of  water  to  one  part  of 
aquafortis.  After  coadng  with  gum,  it  is  ready  for  printing. 

The  most  important  requisite  for  this  printing  is  a  good  arrangement 
that  will  insure  an  exact  register  of  the  second  impression  with  the  first, 
that  the  lights  may  appear  exactly  where  they  belong. 

To  achieve  this,  the  practice  used  to  be  to  draw  two  register  marks  on 
the  stone  holding  the  original  design,  which  were  transferred  to  the  tint 
plate  with  the  rest  of  the  design.  When  the  first  impression  was  made,  the 
printed  paper  was  cut  away  exactly  at  the  marked  points,  and  laid  accu- 
rately, on  the  tone  plate,  being  guided  by  the  two  marks  there.  This  was 
effective,  but  it  had  the  fault  that  the  paper  had  to  be  trimmed  off  care- 
fully for  each  impression  and  that  the  slightest  inaccuracy  spoiled  the  reg- 
ister.  However,  it  is  very  useful  for  printing  proofs. 

It  is  far  better  to  have  a  printing-frame  that  is  so  fixed  that  it  will  never 
shift  its  position  in  the  slightest  degree.  To  this  is  fastened  a  little  movable 
frame  that  has  two  steel  needles  whose  position  is  adjustable  at  will.  Lu- 
bricate the  leather  inside  with  wax  and  lay  a  sheet  of  white  paper  on  it.  See 
that  the  tint  plate  is  so  fastened  in  the  press  that  it  cannot  stir  out  of  place. 
Make  an  impression  and  take  care  especially  that  the  two  register  marks 
print  off  well.  Now  set  the  needles  in  the  little  frame  so  that  they  will  be 
exactly  over  these  two  marks.  If,  then,  an  impression  of  the  design  is  laid 
on  so  that  the  two  guiding-marks  on  it  come  exactly  under  the  two  needles, 
it  will,  of  course,  register  perfectly.  Of  course  the  little  frame  must  be  so 
adjusted  that  it  can  be  folded  back  out  of  the  way  before  each  impression, 
and  the  printing-frame  must  hold  the  sheets  of  paper  so  that  they  cannot 
move. 


1 88     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

To  color  the  tint  plate,  use  a  firrrt  varnish  tinted  with  umber,  or  any 
other  color  that  will  give  the  desired  effect.  New  rollers  are  best,  insuring 
a  fine,  even,  unspotted  tone. 

(3)  In  rough-grinding  the  stones,  it  is  difficult  to  prevent  scratches  and 
furrows  caused  by  the  coarse  sand.  No  design  of  value  should  be  made  on 
such  a  stone,  but  if  one  is  used,  the  defects  should  be  touched  up  with 
chemical  ink  and  a  fine  brush,  as  crayon  will  hardly  do  it. 

(4)  As  the  delicate  places  in  crayon  work  are  not  durable,  etching  hav- 
ing the  property  of  reducing  the  light  portions  and  darkening  the  darker 
ones,  I  tried  the  method  of  drawing  the  lighter  portions  on  a  separate  stone 
in  rather  stronger  manner  and  printing  from  it  with  paler  ink.  The  success 
was  so  great  that  I  hope  in  time  to  produce  true  masterpieces  with  the  aid 
of  skilled  artists,  and  here  call  attention  to  it  in  advance. 

(5)  After  learning  how  to  make  a  second  impression  over  a  first  one, 
it  is  not  difficult  to  pass  on  to  printing  with  several  stones  and  from  that 
going  on  to  color-printing.  In  the  early  days  of  my  invention  I  tried 
color-printing  with  a  crayon  plate  and  had  the  best  success  by  using  sten- 
cils such  as  are  used  by  the  painters  of  cards.  On  oiled  stiff  paper  I  made 
as  many  impressions  of  a  design  as  there  were  to  be  colors.  Then  all  that 
was  to  be  red  was  cut  out  from  one  stencil,  green  from  another,  and  so 
forth.  Then  the  stone  was  wetted,  the  stencil  laid  on  it  and  the  uncovered 
parts  of  the  stones  inked-in  with  the  right  color.  After  all  the  colors  had 
been  applied,  I  made  the  impression,  which  generally  looked  neat  enough, 
but  still  resembled  a  sketchy  drawing  rather  than  a  painting,  because  no 
color  except  black,  zinc  red,  and  dark  blue  permitted  itself  to  be  printed 
strongly  enough.  But  by  using  several  stones,  each  of  which  can  be  de- 
signed and  treated  according  to  the  necessities  of  color,  impressions  can  be 
made  that  resemble  the  English  colored  copper  prints  very  closely,  es- 
pecially if  the  crayon  and  pen  or  brush  methods  are  united. 

(6)  A  stone  plate  maybe  etched  so  that  it  will  have  the  roughness  needed 
for  crayon  work.  Grind  it  as  clean  and  smooth  as  possible  with  pumice, 
pour  aquafortis  over  it  and  coat  with  gum.  Wash  it  well  in  water  and  dry 
with  a  clean  cloth.   Coat  it  very  thinly  but  uniformly  with  tallow  into 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     189 

which  is  mixed  a  little  lampblack,  so  that  one  can  see  if  the  coating  is  per- 
fectly even.  With  a  small  ball  or  roller  covered  with  fine  cloth,  roll  or  pat 
the  stone  till  it  has  a  very  uniform  tone.  Now  pour  a  little  diluted  aqua- 
fortis on  one  end  as  a  test  to  see  if  it  penetrates  uniformly  through  the 
fatty  coating.  Practice  is  needed  to  hit  just  the  right  thickness  that  the 
tallow  coating  must  be.  It  must  be  thin,  and  yet  sufficiently  thick  to  resist 
the  aquafortis  somewhat,  so  that  it  yields  only  at  those  places  where  the 
roughness  of  the  cloth  on  the  roller  has  removed  it  more  or  less. 

If  the  test  is  satisfactory,  make  a  raised  border  of  wax  around  the  stone 
and  pour  the  aquafortis  solution  on  it.  A  solution  of  forty  parts  of  water  to 
one  part  of  aquafortis  is  better  than  a  stronger  one  because  the  stones  are 
more  equally  attacked.  As  soon  as  the  resulting  bubbles  are  as  large  as  the 
head  of  a  small  pin,  the  etching  fluid  is  poured  away  quickly  and  replaced 
with  pure  water  to  get  rid  of  the  bubbles.  Pour  away  the  water  and  apply 
etching  fluid  again.  Repeat  this  four  or  five  times,  according  to  the  grain 
desired,  and  in  the  end  wash  the  stone  well  with  oil  of  turpentine  to  remove 
all  fattiness.  Then  it  must  be  washed  with  weak  but  very  pure  aquafortis, 
followed  by  a  great  deal  of  very  pure  water.  After  cleaning  and  drying  very 
carefully  with  a  clean  rag,  it  is  ready  for  use ;  and  if  the  work  has  been  well 
done,  a  grain  will  have  been  produced  that  is  prettier  and  much  more 
even  than  can  be  produced  by  rubbing  with  sand. 

(7)  The  instructions  given  here  teach  how  to  draw  on  a  stone  that  has 
been  prepared  beforehand  with  aquafortis  and  gum.  This  is  not  in  the 
least  inimical  to  the  durability  of  the  design  if  only  the  union  of  the  gum 
with  the  stone  has  been  destroyed  again  by  washing  afterward  with  diluted 
but  pure  aqaafortis  and  every  trace  of  this  acid  again  has  been  removed 
by  copious  washing  with  pure  water.  If  there  is  a  considerable  amount  of 
the  soap  in  the  crayon,  the  good  result  will  be  greater  than  with  an  entirely 
clean  stone,  because,  since  it  has  already  been  etched  twice,  the  etching 
after  the  design  may  be  very  limited,  so  that  it  is  not  harmful  to  even  the 
most  delicate  shadings  in  the  design. 

(8)  Some  attempts  made  by  me  to  etch  crayon  designs  more  powerfully 
than  usual  proved  that  the  more  delicate  places  would  suffer,  but  if  I 


igo     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

rubbed  them  up  with  a  flat  knife  as  described  before,  they  appeared  again 
and  I  had  the  advantage  that  the  whole  plate  was  much  better  prepared 
than  it  is  with  weak  etching. 

(9)  If  a  crayon  plate  is  spoiled  in  printing  through  carelessness  or  lack 
of  skill,  the  rules  for  remedying  the  trouble  are  the  same  as  those  named 
for  pen  work,  and  the  judgment  of  the  worker  must  decide  which  method 
is  the  most  applicable.  In  general,  it  may  be  assumed  that  the  best  remedy 
for  blurred  spots  is  to  draw  them  over  again  with  crayon ;  and  for  smutted 
parts  the  best  is  to  apply  firmer  printing-color,  or  to  cleanse  with  oil  of  tur- 
pentine and  gum  and  afterward  ink-in  with  acid-proof  ink,  and  then  use 
light  etching  with  weak  aquafortis  followed  always  by  coating  with  gum 
and  water. 

Ill 

TRANSFER   AND   TRACING 

In  the  pen  and  crayon  method  all  the  lines  that  are  to  take  printing- 
color  are  drawn  directly  on  the  stone  with  a  fatty  preparation.  But 
lithography  has  a  unique  way  of  transferring  to  the  stone  a  drawing  or  in- 
scription that  is  first  put  on  paper  with  the  fatty  substance.  This  is  possi- 
ble only  for  lithography,  and  I  incline  to  the  belief  that  it  is  the  most  im- 
portant of  all  my  inventions.  It  makes  it  unnecessary  to  learn  reverse 
writing.  Everybody  who  can  write  on  paper  with  ordinary  ink  can  do  so 
with  the  chemical  transfer  ink,  and  this  writing  can  then  be  transferred  to 
the  stone  and  manifolded  indefinitely.  In  Munich  and  Petersburg  this 
method  has  been  introduced  for  government  work.  The  measures  adopted 
in  council  are  written  during  the  session  by  the  secretary,  with  chemical 
ink  on  paper,  and  sent  to  the  printery.  Within  an  hour  impressions  are 
ready  to  distribute  among  the  members.  I  am  convinced  that  within  ten 
years  every  European  Government  will  have  a  lithographic  establishment. 

In  war  the  method  would  have  a  great  value.  It  would  replace  the  field 
printery,  and  it  permits  greater  speed  and  secrecy.  The  commander  need 
merely  write  his  orders  himself  and  have  them  printed  in  his  presence  by  a 
man  who  cannot  read,  to  be  sure  that  his  plans  will  not  be  betrayed.  The 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     191 

engineer  officers  can  draw  plans  and  have  them  circulated  among  the 
officers  who  need  them. 

Authors  and  scientists  will  find  the  method  to  be  the  means  of  circulat- 
ing their  works  in  manuscript  very  cheaply. 

Even  artists  will  respect  the  method  when  its  gradual  perfection  en- 
ables them  to  draw  their  pictures  on  paper  with  ink  or  crayon  and  repro- 
duce them. 

Not  from  boastfulness,  but  from  conviction  of  the  importance  of  the 
method,  have  I  thus  recounted  its  advantages.  I  could  fill  a  whole  book 
with  detailed  explanations.  I  wish  to  gain  friends  for  the  method,  that  it 
may  be  improved  to  its  ultimate  degree  by  skilled  artists. 

The  chemical  ink  used  for  the  paper  may  be  soft  or  firm.  The  paper 
may  be  specially  prepared  or  not.  The  stone  may  be  warm  or  cold.  The 
design  leaves  the  paper  entirely  and  clings  to  the  stone,  or  does  so  only 
partly.  To  describe  all  this  would  take  too  much  space.  I  will  describe 
only  the  method  that  I  consider  best,  namely,  a  method  under  which  the 
work  is  done  with  a  soft  ink,  and  transferred  to  an  unwarmed  stone.  This 
is  the  quickest  and  surest,  and  has  the  advantage  of  not  spoiling  the  ori- 
ginal. 

In  a  clean  coffee  cup  rub  down  a  piece,  as  large  as  a  hazel  nut,  of  the 
chemical  ink  described  under  the  heading  "Transfer  Ink"  in  an  earlier 
part  of  this  work.  Dissolve  with  rain  water  or  soft  river  water.  The 
amount  of  water  is  determined  according  to  the  need  for  fine  or  coarse 
work.  In  the  latter  case,  the  ink  should  be  thinner,  that  there  may  not 
be  too  much  ink  in  the  design  after  it  dries. 

While  the  writing  or  design  is  drying,  select  a  stone  that  either  has  not 
been  used  before  or  at  least  has  been  thoroughly  ground  off,  and  grind  it 
down  once  more  with  pure  and  dry  pumice  stone  without  water,  until  it  is 
certain  that  all  parts  of  the  surface  have  been  rubbed  down  so  thoroughly 
that  the  stone  may  properly  be  considered  a  new  one.  Clean  away  the 
dust  with  clean  paper,  fasten  the  stone  in  the  press,  examine  the  scraper 
to  make  sure  that  it  is  even,  adjust  the  press  for  the  proper  pressure ;  in  a 
word,  do  all  that  is  necessary  for  good  impressions.  From  this  time  on  the 


192     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

greatest  care  must  be  taken  not  to  touch  the  polished  stone  with  as  much 
as  a  finger,  not  to  mention  keeping  grease  and  dirt  away  from  it. 

As  soon  as  every  point  in  the  design  on  the  paper  is  perfectly  dry,  wet  it 
on  the  reverse  side  with  a  sponge  dipped  into  weak  but  pure  aquafortis 
until  the  paper  is  quite  soft.  Lay  it  between  waste  paper  sheets  for  a  time, 
to  prevent  it  from  pulling  out  of  shape  and  to  remove  the  excess  moisture. 
It  must  be  soft,  but  not  wet,  when  the  impression  is  made. 

Lay  the  paper  face  down  on  the  stone.  On  it  lay  two  sheets  of  dry  waste 
paper,  then  an  equally  large  piece  of  taffeta,  another  sheet  of  waste  paper 
and  make  the  transfer  print  with  a  moderately  swift  motion  of  the  press, 
which  must  have  more  tension  than  is  used  for  ordinary  impressions.  The 
power  of  a  lever  press  is  insufficient  for  larger  stones,  and  a  cylinder  press 
is  required. 

After  a  few  minutes  the  stone  is  withdrawn  from  the  press,  the  paper  is 
hfted  off  and  the  stone  permitted  to  dry  for  a  minute.  It  is  better  if  one 
can  wait  longer.  Then  put  it  into  the  etching-trough,  and  pour  over  it, 
quickly  and  only  once,  a  clean  but  weak  solution  of  one  hundred  parts 
of  water  to  one  part  of  aquafortis.  It  is  necessary  to  be  skillful  enough  to 
cover  the  whole  surface  with  one  application.  Then  the  stone  is  washed 
by  pouring  pure  water  over  it,  and,  if  time  permits,  set  aside  to  dry.  If 
time  is  limited,  the  gum  solution  to  prepare  the  stone  can  be  put  on  at 
once.  Now  the  transfer  is  on  the  stone,  properly  etched  and  prepared. 
To  make  clean  impressions,  however,  the  printing-color  must  first  be 
rubbed  on,  then  the  stone  must  be  inked-in  with  acid-proof  color  and  after 
that  undergo  another  etching,  a  trifle  stronger. 

To  rub  on  the  printing-color,  rub  a  little  acid-proof  color  into  a  piece  of 
clean  linen  or  cotton,  so  that  it  is  well  permeated  but  not  thickly  covered. 
Rub  this  rag  gently  to  and  fro  over  the  transfer  while  the  gum  is  still  on  it, 
till  every  part  of  the  design  is  nicely  inked.  This  rubbing-in  of  color  is  an 
important  part  of  many  of  the  processes  that  will  be  described  later. 

Now  clean  the  stone  well  with  water,  ink-in  with  acid-proof  ink,  and 
etch  it  again  as  has  been  described  several  times.  Then  it  is  ready  for 
printing.  The  last  etching  is  not  necessary  if  only  a  few  impressions  are 
desired. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     193 

Transfer  is  applicable  not  only  for  pen  designs  but  also  for  crayon.  The 
crayon  used  for  the  purpose  should  be  softened  a  little  with  tallow,  or,  if  the 
harder  crayon  is  used,  the  stone  should  be  warmed  when  making  the  trans- 
fer. But  it  must  not  be  inked-in  or  have  color  rubbed  on,  until  it  is  quite 
cold  again.  For  crayon  transfer  the  paper  used  generally  is  fine  drawing- 
paper.  It  must  be  wetted  widi  somewhat  stronger  aquafortis  that  it  may 
release  the  crayon  more  readily.  The  rest  of  the  process  is  the  same. 

Besides  these  two  methods,  the  transfer  process  can  be  used  for  all  pro- 
ducts of  the  book-printer's  art,  type  as  well  as  wood-cut.  A  freshly 
printed  sheet  can  be  transferred  directly  to  a  stone,  especially  if  the  printer 
has  used  our  before-mentioned  acid-proof  ink  instead  of  his  ordinary  prin- 
ter's ink.  To  get  a  perfectly  clear  transfer  it  is  necessary  merely  to  see  that 
the  printer  does  not  use  too  much  overlay,  which  would  stamp  the  type  too 
deeply  into  the  paper;  and  that  before  trying  to  transfer  the  printed  sheet 
to  the  stone  it  is  subjected  to  gentle  pressure  in  the  press  to  free  it  from  all 
inequalities.  To  do  this  without  at  the  same  time  risking  any  loss  of  ink 
which  might  subsequently  weaken  the  transfer,  the  sheet  is  well  wetted, 
laid  on  a  clean,  wet  stone  that  has  been  prepared  so  that  it  will  not  have  any 
inclination  to  take  color,  and  subjected  to  a  very  slight  pressure,  the  press 
being  used  with  almost  no  tension.  This  makes  the  printed  sheet  beauti- 
fully even.  Then  if  it  is  transferred  to  a  stone  properly  prepared  as  de- 
scribed before,  the  transfer  will  be  perfect. 

Even  old  book  pages  can  be  freshened  up  and  transferred.  I  have 
spoken  already  of  those  that  are  on  unsized  paper.  With  prints  on  sized 
paper  the  method  is  as  follows :  — 

Make  a  paint-like  mixture  of  fine  chalk  and  starch  paste.  Thin  it  down 
with  water  and  paint  the  sheet.  Dip  a  bit  of  linen  rag  into  a  thin  color 
made  of  thin  varnish  and  tallow  tinted  with  vermilion.  Touch-up  the  wet 
paper  with  the  rag  till  every  bit  of  type  has  taken  red  color.  Pour  clean 
water  over  it  and  touch-up  the  paper  everywhere  with  a  ball  of  fine  cloth 
stuffed  with  horsehair.  This  will  remove  all  surplus  color.  Continue  this 
till  the  type  matter  is  only  faintly  red.  Then  the  paper  must  be  washed 
very  thoroughly  with  many  pourings  of  water  and  laid  between  waste 


194     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

paper  sheets  to  remove  all  surplus  moisture.  The  transfer  and  so  on  must 
be  done  then  as  in  the  other  cases. 

Good  transfers  can  be  made  also  from  a  copper-plate  engraving  if  the 
copper-plate  impression  is  made  with  our  acid-proof  ink.  The  ordi- 
nary copper-plate  ink  is  not  so  good.  It  will  be  self-evident  that  designs 
on  stone  can  be  transferred  and  reproduced  the  same  way. 

The  tracing  process  has  the  property  in  common  with  the  transfer  pro- 
cess that  it  transmits  only  a  small  amount  of  fattiness  to  the  stone  and 
requires  subsequent  rubbing-in  of  color  to  give  it  strength. 

Coat  a  piece  of  thin  and  clean  vellum  paper  with  tallow  and  lampblack 
and  wipe  it  off  again  as  neatly  as  possible,  so  that  there  remains  only  a 
thin  film,  which  will  not  smut  the  stone  when  laid  face  down,  unless  pres- 
sure is  exerted.  Now  draw  on  this  with  a  clean  English  lead  pencil  that 
contains  no  sand,  or  with  a  composition  of  lead,  zinc,  and  bismuth,  and 
the  pressure  will  force  the  design  on  the  stone  and  transfer  its  fat,  which 
then  penetrates  the  stone  and  will  give  impressions.  In  preparing  a  stone 
thus  made,  greater  care  in  etching  is  necessary  than  even  in  the  transfer 
process.  Very  weak  aquafortis  solution  must  be  used. 

The  process  is  something  between  pen  and  crayon  work.  It  is  quite 
applicable  for  sketches  and  pictures  that  are  to  be  illuminated. 

IV 

CONCERNING  THE  WOOD-CUT  STYLE 

For  this  purpose,  the  stone  is  coated  completely  with  chemical  ink  on 
the  places  where  this  style  is  to  be  used.  As  soon  as  it  is  dry,  the  lights  are 
drawn  into  it  with  a  steel  engraving-needle  that  is  ground  to  a  sharp  or 
broad  point  according  to  requirement.  Those  parts  that  are  to  be  very 
white,  with  fine  lines  and  specks,  are  best  drawn  in  with  the  pen.  Thus 
the  wood-cut  style  differs  from  the  ordinary  pen  design  chiefly  in  charac- 
ter and  in  the  treatment  of  the  darker  parts.  Its  practice  is  much  easier  on 
the  stone  than  on  wood,  and  it  can  be  combined  with  crayon  work.  Etch- 
ing, preparation,  and  printing  are  the  same  as  with  other  styles. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE    195 


TWO  KINDS  OF  TOUCIIE  DRAWING 

One  of  these  resembles  the  wood-cut  style  in  method  but  in  effect 
approaches  copper-plate  work.  The  stone  is  grained  as  for  crayon, 
etched,  prepared  with  gum,  cleansed  with  water,  coated  well  with  soap- 
water,  wiped,  dried,  and  finally  coated  with  a  thin,  colored  covering  of  fat, 
by  either  coating  with  acid-proof  ink  or  with  hard  chemical  ink. 

This  first  etching  and  preparation  are  required  to  prevent  the  fat  to  be 
applied  afterward  from  penetrating  too  deeply  into  the  stone,  so  that  it 
may  adhere  only  to  the  surface. 

Now  the  design  is  made  on  it  with  a  steel  scraper.  The  manipulation  is 
like  that  for  making  tint  plates.  It  demands  greater  care,  however,  and 
better  etching. 

The  completed  design  is  etched  (phosphoric  acid  being  best)  and  coated 
with  gum.  A  few  drops  of  oil  of  turpentine  are  poured  on  and  all  the  color 
is  wiped  away  with  a  woolen  rag,  but  without  any  rough  rubbing.  Then 
the  plate  can  be  inked-in  with  fairly  firm  acid-proof  ink. 

The  second  method  would  excel  crayon  work  if  it  were  perfected.  I 
have  advanced  pretty  far  with  it.  It  is  an  imitation  of  the  ordinary  wash 
drawing  which  is  done  with  a  brush  and  dissolved  Chinese  ink  on  paper. 

The  stone,  which  must  be  very  clean  and  free  from  all  fat,  is  grained, 
coated  with  soap-water,  cleaned  with  oil  of  turpentine,  and  dried.  Then  a 
hard  chemical  ink,  which  may  contain  a  litde  more  soap  than  usual,  or  the 
ink  described  for  brush  work,  is  dissolved  in  pure  rain  water  and  used  on 
the  stone  with  a  brush  just  as  it  would  be  used  on  paper. 

When  the  design  is  finished  and  very  well  dried,  the  entire  surface  of  the 
stone  is  rubbed  gently  with  a  fine  cloth,  in  order  to  perforate  the  color  with 
tiny  holes  everywhere.  As  it  will  perforate  more  readily  in  the  parts  where 
the  ink  has  been  laid  on  thinly,  the  succeeding  aquafortis  will  eat  through 
there  more  easily,  and  thus  the  etching  will  correspond  nicely  with  the 
tones  of  the  design.  It  is  necessary,  however,  to  know  the  strength  of  the 
acid  and  the  resisting  power  of  the  ink  very  accurately.  It  is  well  to 


196    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

experiment  and  write  down  the  best  proportions.  In  any  case,  the  etching 
fluid  must  not  be  too  strong  and  the  etching  must  not  be  done  by  pouring 
or  brushing,  but  in  the  copper  etcher's  manner,  by  framing  the  stone  with 
wax  so  that  the  fluid  will  lie  on  the  stone.  As  soon  as  the  resulting  bubbles 
reach  the  magnitude  of  a  pin's  head,  the  fluid  is  poured  ofi^  instantly  and 
then  poured  on  again  till  the  bubbles  reappear.  How  long  this  must  be 
continued  depends  on  the  strength  of  the  ink. 

It  is  understood,  of  course,  that  the  etched  stone  must  then  be  coated 
with  gum. 

VI 

THE  SPATTER  METHOD 

This  speedy  and  easily  executed  style  surely  will  come  into  wide  use 
soon.    It  is  done  as  follows: — 

The  outlines  of  a  design  are  laid  on  a  stone  prepared  for  pen  work, 
by  tracing.  Then  they  are  traced  again,  say  four  times,  on  sheets  of  paper. 
On  each  sheet  everything  that  falls  into  the  category  of  one  of  the  four 
chief  tones  is  cut  out  with  a  sharp  penknife  so  that  the  four  sheets  are  like 
the  stencils  of  card  painters.  Now  the  chief  lines  of  the  design  are  made  on 
the  stone  with  chemical  ink,  using  either  brush  or  pen.  Lay  one  of  the 
stencils  on  it  exactly,  weight  it  that  it  may  not  move,  and  perform  the 
operation  of  spattering. 

This  is  done  by  dipping  a  small  brush,  such  as  a  clean  toothbrush,  into 
chemical  ink  and  scraping  it  with  a  knife  so  that  the  ink  is  spattered  over 
the  stone.  Care  must  be  exercised  not  to  have  too  much  ink  in  the  brush, 
for  fear  of  blots  or  over-large  spattering.  After  practice  it  will  be  possible 
to  produce  such  fine  and  uniform  dots  as  cannot  possibly  be  produced  by 
the  pen.  After  the  desired  grade  of  shading  has  been  achieved,  the  stone 
is  permitted  to  dry.  Then  the  second  stencil  is  laid  on  and  the  operation 
repeated  till  all  have  been  used.  If  enough  stencils  are  made,  the  whole 
design  can  be  made  by  spattering.  It  is  not  necessary,  however,  to  make 
many,  as  the  design  has  to  be  finished  up  by  hand  afterward  an5rway. 

This  finishing-up  is  done  first  with  the  engraving-needle,  which  opens 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE    197 

and  decreases  all  dots  that  are  too  large,  and  then  with  the  pen,  which 
brings  out  the  true  proportions  of  the  various  tones. 

VII 

TOUCHE  WITH  SEVERAL  PLATES 

This  really  is  only  a  process  of  using  many  tint  plates.  It  makes 
splendid  effects  possible,  equal  to  any  produced  by  an  artist  with 
Chinese  ink,  and  deserves  the  attention  of  all  artists,  especially  as  it  is  the 
easiest  and  quickest  of  all  methods,  even  though  it  is  a  little  circumstantial 
in  the  printing. 

Draw  the  outlines  of  a  design  on  the  stone  in  chemical  ink  with  pen  or 
brush,  and  then  make  four,  five,  or  six  transfers  on  stone  plates  prepared 
for  pen  work.  Register  marks  must  be  on  the  design.  Now  draw-in  the 
darkest  parts  on  the  first  plate,  the  less  dark  ones  on  the  second,  the  lighter 
ones  on  the  third,  and  so  on  till  the  whole  design  is  finished.  The  work 
is  best  done  with  a  brush.  One  or  more  of  the  stones  may  be  designed  with 
crayon;  but  the  number  of  stones  designed  with  ink  must  be  greater,  in 
order  to  make  the  grain  of  the  crayon  designs  unnoticeable. 

The  etching  is  done  as  in  pen  work.  For  each  stone  the  printing-color  is 
chosen  according  to  the  tone  of  its  design.  Of  course  particular  accuracy 
is  vital;  but  the  artist  should  not  permit  the  apparent  difficulties  to  frighten 
him,  as  he  will  see  very  soon  after  trial  that  no  other  method  produces  such 
beautiful  results. 

VIII 

COLOR-PRINTING  WITH  MANY  PLATES 

This  method,  in  which  the  various  colors  are  drawn  on  several  stones, 
either  with  pen  or  crayon,  resembles  the  one  just  described. 

According  to  treatment  the  impressions  will  resemble  a  painting,  a 
copper-plate  engraving  in  color,  or  an  illuminated  copper-plate  engraving, 
if  the  color  stones  are  used  merely  to  lay  colors  over  a  design  already 
printed  in  its  entirety  in  black. 


igS     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

The  whole  process  is  so  like  the  preceding  one  that  I  need  merely 
recount  the  colors  that  I  have  found  serviceable  for  the  purpose. 

Red.  Vermilion,  red  lake  of  cochineal,  fine  madder  lake,  and  finally 
carmine  if  it  is  mixed  first  with  Venetian  turpentine  before  being  com- 
bined with  varnish,  as  otherwise  it  inclines  to  separate  from  the  varnish 
and  unite  with  water,  staining  the  whole  printing-paper  red. 

Blue.  Berlin  blue  and  mineral  blue.  Use  only  a  small  amount,  suf- 
ficient for  a  few  hours.  These  colors  dry  quickly,  and,  besides,  make  the 
varnish  too  tough,  so  that  they  must  be  thinned  down  from  time  to  time 
with  a  little  linseed  oil.  Fine  indigo  is  very  good,  also  a  blue  lake  that  is 
made  of  logwood  and  verdigris.  This  latter  is  not  durable  in  sunlight. 

I  have  had  no  success  as  yet  with  green  or  yellow. 

Verdigris  is  difficult  to  manipulate  because  it  smuts  the  stone  easily  and 
does  not  tolerate  many  mixtures.  Schweinfurther  green,  one  of  the  new 
colors,  is  much  better  in  all  respects,  but  not  dark  enough.  Mixtures  of 
yellow  lake  with  indigo  or  mineral  blue  are  not  very  durable.  Golden  yel- 
low ochre  with  mineral  blue  or  indigo  does  not  produce  a  pretty  green,  and 
King's  yellow  mixed  with  blue  is  handsome  but  not  durable.  Neapolitan 
yellow  and  the  newer  chrome  yellow  with  blue  produce  a  green  that  is  not 
dark  enough. 

I  have  obtained  the  handsomest  and  darkest  green  by  printing  the  de- 
sign blue  first  and  then  printing  over  it  a  yellow  plate,  so  that  the  yellow 
lay  over  the  blue.  By  using  Berlin  blue  and  fine  ochre  a  fairly  handsome 
color  is  produced.  On  account  of  its  loss  of  color  in  water,  ochre  cannot 
be  used  unless  Venetian  turpentine  is  first  mixed  with  the  varnish. 

A  handsome  and  at  the  same  time  dark  yellow  is  equally  hard  to  obtain. 
Till  a  good  color  is  invented,  we  must  content  ourselves  with  ochre,  Terra 
de  Sienna,  Neapolitan  yellow,  mineral  yellow  or  chrome. 

This  printing  with  various  colors  is  a  process  for  which  the  stone  is  su- 
perior; and  it  is  susceptible  of  such  perfection  that  in  future  true  paintings 
will  be  produced  by  its  means.  My  experience  convinces  me  of  this. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     199 

IX 

GOLD  AND  SILVER  PRINTING 

This  process  is  useful  for  decoration. 

Those  parts  of  the  design  that  are  to  appear  in  gold  or  silver  are 
drawn  with  chemical  ink  on  a  stone  prepared  for  pen  work.  After  the 
drawing  is  dry,  it  is  etched  and  prepared  in  the  usual  way.  The  printing  is 
done  with  a  silver  gray  color  of  firm  varnish,  fine  crayon  and  a  very  little 
lampblack.  The  paper  must  be  entirely  dry  and  very  smooth.  Soon  after 
the  impression  has  been  made,  the  printed  parts  are  covered  with  silver  or 
gold  leaf  such  as  is  used  by  gilders.  It  is  pressed  on  slightly  with  cotton, 
that  it  may  adhere,  and  then  a  sheet  of  paper  is  laid  over  it.  Then  the  sec- 
ond impression  is  made,  treated  the  same  way,  and  so  on. 

No  more  impressions  must  be  made  than  one  can  cover  with  silver  or 
gold  in  two  hours.  If  the  ink  is  on  the  paper  too  long,  it  will  draw  in  and 
not  take  the  metal  well.  After  gilding  or  silvering,  the  sheets  must  lie  for 
some  hours  or  till  the  next  day,  that  the  ink  may  take  perfect  hold  of  the 
paper,  so  that,  in  the  succeeding  pressing,  it  will  not  penetrate  the  metal 
and  make  it  look  sooty.  The  pressing  is  done  by  laying  six  or  eight  impres- 
sions on  a  clean  stone  under  the  press  and  passing  them  through  as  for 
printing,  with  the  proper  tension.  This  tension  must  be  adjusted  accord- 
ing to  the  firmness  of  the  printing-color;  therefore  it  is  best  to  make  test 
with  one  sheet.  Then,  if  the  metal  does  not  adhere  sufficiently,  the  pres- 
sure can  be  increased. 

In  the  end  all  surplus  gold  or  silver  is  removed  by  gentle  wiping  with 
clean  cotton.  This  is  easy,  as  it  will  have  fastened  itself  only  to  the  printed 
parts.  If  the  impressions  can  be  set  aside  for  some  days  without  being 
wiped,  it  is  better,  and  there  is  not  so  much  danger  of  injuring  the  bril- 
liancy of  the  metal. 

If  gold  and  silver  are  to  be  printed  on  designs  where  there  is  other  color 
also,  or  where  there  is  black,  the  print  on  which  the  metal  is  to  be  applied 
must  always  be  made  first.  Only  when  the  sheets  have  been  gilded  or  sil- 
vered, pressed,  wiped,  and  cleaned,  is  the  black  design  to  be  printed  on 


200     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

from  the  next  plate.  That  all  this  must  be  done  with  the  register  marks 
previously  described  is,  of  course,  self-evident. 

So  I  close  my  description  of  the  Relief  method ;  and  I  hope  that  I  have 
made  it  all  so  clear  that  good  results  will  come  to  all  who  follow  my  direc- 
tions. 

CHAPTER  II 

INTAGLIO  METHOD 

This  differs  from  the  other  in  that  the  fat,  which  is  to  attract  the  print- 
ing-color, is  under  the  surface  of  the  stone,  the  design  having  been  either 
engraved-in  or  etched,  and  then  filled  with  fat. 

Like  the  preceding  method,  it  has  several  branches.  The  best  are 
these :  — 


THE  LINE  ENGRAVED  STYLE 

This  is  one  of  the  most  useful  branches  of  lithography,  and  if  the  artist 
has  attained  enough  skill  and  the  printer  knows  his  trade,  it  approaches 
very  near  to  the  handsomest  copper  plates,  and  at  the  same  time  is  about 
three  times  easier  and  quicker  than  work  on  copper.  It  is  splendidly 
adapted  for  writings  and  charts. 

Choose  a  hard,  uniform  stone  of  the  best  kind.  Grind  it  as  finely  as  pos- 
sible. Etch  with  aquafortis  and  prepare  with  gum.  This,  at  least,  was  my 
early  method,  and  it  has  remained  in  use  in  all  printeries.  Later,  however, 
I  discovered  that  it  is  almost  better  to  coat  the  stone  with  gum  without 
previous  etching,  because  it  can  be  more  easily  worked  then.  Only  in  that 
case  it  must  be  perfectly  clean  and  contain  no  concealed  fattiness.  Im- 
mediately after  the  stone  has  been  coated  with  gum  (not  some  hours  later, 
as  many  do)  the  gum  must  be  removed  with  water,  that  it  may  not  pene- 
trate too  deeply  and  thus  cause  a  condition  which  will  prevent  the  finest 
lines  from  taking  on  color  subsequently. 

Then  coat  the  plate  with  a  tint  made  of  gum  solution  and  lampblack  or 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     201 

red  chalk.  Use  a  soft  brush  to  make  the  coating  very  thin  and  uniform. 
It  has  the  double  purpose,  first,  of  giving  the  stone  a  color  so  that  the  en- 
graver can  see  his  work,  and  of  covering  the  prepared  surface  of  the  stone 
with  a  protective  coat  that  later  will  admit  the  fatty  printing-color  only 
where  it  has  been  pierced  by  the  engraving-tool.  It  is  evident  that  this 
latter  property  is  increased  according  to  the  amount  of  gum  in  it,  yet  only 
little  gum  must  be  used  in  it,  the  permissible  amount  being  only  just 
enough  to  insure  that  the  coating  shall  not  be  easily  wiped  away  during  the 
work  of  engraving. 

The  stone  must  be  absolutely  dry  before  any  work  is  done  on  it.  Then 
the  design  is  traced  on  it,  or  drafted  directly  on  it  with  lead.  Transfer 
by  printing  from  paper  is  not  advisable,  because  the  resulting  fattiness  of 
the  design  makes  the  graver  slip. 

For  the  actual  work  of  engraving  there  is  no  counsel  to  be  given  except 
to  choose  good  and  sharp  needles  of  the  very  best  steel,  hard  enough  to  cut 
glass;  and  that  all  lines  must  be  graved  clean.  There  must  be  no  excessive 
pressure,  and  in  wide  strokes  there  must  be  no  excessive  depths.  In  mak- 
ing very  fine  lines  the  stone  should  merely  be  touched  by  the  tool.  If  they 
appear  white,  and  a  little  fine  dust  is  observed,  one  may  be  certain  that 
they  will  appear  properly  in  the  printing.  Broad  lines  often  can  be  made 
with  one  stroke  of  a  flat  needle,  but  generally  they  are  made  by  continued, 
gradual  scraping.  If  the  stone  is  to  be  only  lightly  wiped  during  printing, 
the  broad  lines  must  not  be  deeper  than  strictly  necessary  to  make  them 
clear,  as  otherwise  they  will  squash.  In  true  art  works,  however,  which  are 
to  be  printed  with  firm  color  and  under  more  powerful  rubbing  and  wiping, 
the  depths  of  all  lines  must  be  considered  carefully,  as  they  will  print 
darker  or  lighter  according  to  depth. 

Of  all  things  the  worker  must  take  heed  against  touching  the  stone  with 
dirty  or  greasy  hands,  for  a  plate  thus  blemished  is  not  only  difficult  to  en- 
grave, but  the  grease  finally  may  penetrate  through  the  slightly  gummed 
coating  and  enter  the  stone,  making  much  consequent  trouble  when  the 
printing  begins. 

It  is  more  harmful  still  to  wet  the  stone  in  any  way,  because  then  the 


202     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

coating  gum  will  dissolve,  penetrate  into  the  engraved  lines  and  give  them 
a  preparation,  so  that  they  cannot  take  color  afterward.  Therefore,  espe- 
cially in  winter,  a  very  cold  stone  must  be  warmed  before  working  on  it 
with  the  design,  as  otherwise  the  moisture  in  the  room  will  precipitate 
itself  on  the  stone.  Even  the  perspiration  of  the  hands  or  the  moisture  of 
the  breath  may  cause  damage.  Therefore  a  good  but  careful  warming  is 
very  advisable. 

If  a  plate  has  become  moistened,  as,  for  instance,  from  a  breath,  it  must 
be  permitted  to  dry  before  doing  any  further  work  on  it,  and  especially  it 
must  not  be  wiped. 

The  dust  resulting  from  the  engraving  is  to  be  removed  either  with  a 
soft  brush  or  by  blowing  it  away. 

•Faulty  lines  that  are  noticed  during  the  engraving  may  be  scraped  flat 
very  carefully  so  that  no  furrows  are  made,  or  they  may  be  rubbed  off 
with  fine  pumice,  after  which  those  places  must  be  prepared  again,  and 
coated  with  gum  applied  with  a  small  brush.  Then  the  corrections  can  be 
made.  If  only  tiny  places  are  faulty,  they  need  merely  be  coated  with  a 
mixture  of  weak  phosphoric  acid,  gum,  and  lampblack  or  red  chalk.  This 
prepares  them.  Thus  they  will  not  take  color  during  the  print,  and  so  are 
practically  removed. 

When  the  design  is  finished,  the  stone  must  be  very  dry  that  it  may 
take  color  well.  But  it  must  not  be  warmed,  as  this  would  incline  it  to  take 
smut.  A  color  consisting  of  thin  varnish,  a  little  tallow,  and  lampblack  is 
now  rubbed  swiftly  into  all  the  depressions,  and  immediately  wiped  away 
again  with  a  woolen  rag  wetted  with  gum  solution.  This  removes  the  ori- 
ginal red  or  black  coating  also. 

Thus  the  hitherto  colored  stone  becomes  perfectly  white,  while  the  en- 
graved design,  which  has  appeared  white,  is  now  black.  The  first  impres- 
sion that  the  eye  will  gain  will  be  that  now  the  design  appears  much  finer 
than  it  did  before.  That  is  because  every  white  line  on  a  dark  background 
looks  wider  than  a  black  line  of  the  same  thickness  on  a  white  background. 
Therefore,  while  engraving,  the  artist  should  aim  to  make  his  lines  a  trifle 
bigger  than  his  eye  would  suggest. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     203 

In  printing  the  stone  the  usual  precautions  required  in  every  form  of 
lithographic  printing  must  be  observed.  Beyond  that,  the  matter  of  chief 
importance  is  the  proper  composition  of  the  printing-color. 

Stone  plates  made  in  this  way  can  be  inked-in  (i)  by  rubbing-in  the 
color  and  light  wiping,  and  (2)  by  harder  Wiping,  and  (3)  by  the  ink-roller. 

For  the  first  method,  a  color  can  be  made  of  thin  varnish  and  burned 
lampblack,  the  latter  being  present  in  fairly  large  quantity  but  very  finely 
rubbed-down.  Into  this  color  is  mixed  a  quantity,  equivalent  to  one  half 
the  mass,  of  gum  solution  that  is  almost  as  thick  as  the  color  itself  Every- 
thing must  be  mixed  perfectly.  If  the  solution  is  too  watery,  it  is  not  easy 
to  mix  it. 

Three  clean  rags  of  cotton  or  linen  are  needed  for  inking.  The  first  is 
used  to  wet  the  stone  and  to  clean  it  again  in  the  end.  The  second  is  col- 
ored with  a  small  quantity  of  printing-color  and  rubbed  in  by  thorough 
wiping  to  and  fro.  The  third  rag  is  used  to  clean  away  any  surplus  that 
may  adhere.  Then  the  first  clean  rag  is  used  to  cleanse  the  stone  tlior- 
oughly. 

All  three  rags  must  be  wetted  with  gum  solution,  and  the  first  and  third 
must  be  washed  several  times  during  the  day. 

The  stone  plate  is  harder  to  clean  at  first  than  after  some  fifty  impres- 
sions have  been  made.  Often  there  will  remain  httle  specks  of  color  on  the 
prepared  places,  which  are  easy  enough  to  wipe  away  but  are  inclined  to 
reappear.  To  remedy  this  it  may  be  necessary  to  use  more  clean  rags  in 
the  beginning  or  more  gum  solution.  If  the  stone  has  been  polished  very 
well  in  grinding,  this  trouble  will  not  be  very  noticeable  if  at  all.  Under 
any  circumstances,  it  will  disappear  gradually  during  the  printing,  so  that 
at  last  it  will  be  possible  to  clean  the  surface  with  the  very  same  rag  that 
lays  the  color  on  and  is  permeated  with  ink. 

In  the  second  method,  the  wiping  is  harder  in  order  to  take  more  color 
away  from  the  shallower  lines,  so  that  they  will  be  pale  compared  with  the 
deep  ones  which  then  will  appear  very  black  and  strong. 

If  the  full  beauty  of  a  well-made  copper  plate  is  to  be  equaled,  cafe 
must  be  taken,  as  said  before,  to  achieve  the  proper  depth  of  engraving, 


204     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

and  the  stone  must  be  wiped  harder.  Otherwise  the  method  is  the  same, 
except  that  beautiful,  shining  impressions  often  can  be  made  by  using  a 
firm  color,  if  the  stone  can  bear  the  necessary  tension. 

The  inking-in  with  the  ink-roller  is  like  the  same  process  in  other 
methods,  except  that  the  color  must  be  softer  and  the  roller  well  filled  with 
it.  It  is  necessary,  also,  to  learn  by  practice  how  to  work  the  color  into  all 
the  deep  lines. 

The  impression  must  be  made  immediately  after  inking,  as  otherwise 
the  color  will  sink  too  deeply  into  the  stone  and  not  give  a  strong  impres- 
sion without  renewed  inking. 

The  paper  must  be  wetted  a  little  more  than  in  the  other  method. 

The  tension  of  the  press  is  according  to  the  size  of  the  plates,  but  on  the 
whole  must  be  two  or  three  times  greater  than  for  the  other  methods.  More 
pressure  still  may  be  needed  for  very  fine  work,  as  the  finer  lines  often  are 
harder  to  print  than  the  coarse  ones. 

As  soon  as  the  first  clean  proof  is  pulled,  it  must  be  examined  for  errors 
or  faults  in  the  design.  If  there  are  any,  the  stone  is  removed  from  the 
press  after  being  delicately  coated  with  gum,  and  the  correction  is  made  as 
follows :  Before  anything  else,  all  such  faults  as  are  to  be  removed  entirely 
are  either  scraped  away  with  a  very  sharp  knife  or  rubbed  away  with  a 
very  fine  stone.  The  manipulation  must  be  very  delicate  to  avoid  grooves 
and  furrows  or  sharp  edges  that  afterward  will  hold  dirt.  Then  the  parts 
thus  corrected  are  coated  with  a  mixture  of  about  six  parts  water,  two  parts 
gum,  and  one  part  aquafortis  to  prepare  them  anew. 

If  anything  new  is  to  be  added  to  the  design  or  drawn  in  place  of  an 
error,  the  stone  is  washed  with  water  throughout,  or,  if  the  correction  is  to 
be  made  only  in  a  very  small  part,  washed  at  the  desired  place.  Then  it  is 
coated  with  the  red  chalk  as  described  in  the  beginning,  but  so  thinly  that 
the  design  can  be  seen  plainly  through  the  red  coat.  Now  all  that  is  de- 
sired can  be  engraved,  filled  again  with  the  rubbing-in  color,  and  turned 
over  to  the  printer,  who  cleanses  it  with  gum  water  and  proceeds  to  print. 

Only  a  few  more  useful  suggestions:  — 

(i)  It  happens  often  that  after  the  first  rubbing-in  of  fat  color  and  the 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     205 

succeeding  cleansing  with  water,  the  stone  gets  a  "tone"  over  its  whole 
surface;  that  is,  it  takes  color  at  least  partly,  and  thus  seems  to  have  lost 
its  original  preparation.  This  may  be  due  to  the  fact  that  not  enough  gum 
has  been  used  in  the  original  coating,  or  that  the  rubbing-in  was  rough 
enough  to  injure  the  protective  coating,  or  that  the  rubbing-in-color  was 
left  on  too  long  before  being  washed  away  with  gum  solution. 

A  similar  fault  may  develop  with  the  second  rubbing-in,  after  correc- 
tions, and  from  the  following  causes:  Poor  color  containing  sand ;  too  much 
pressure  with  the  greasy  rags;  the  use  of  rags  not  sufficiently  cleansed  of' 
any  soap  used  in  washing  them;  rubbing-in  of  color  with  too  dry  a  color 
rag;  in  brief,  from  anything  that  may  destroy  the  stone's  preparation 
wholly  or  in  part. 

Sometimes  this  defect  may  be  remedied  by  mixing  more  gum  into  the 
printing-color  and  into  the  water  with  which  the  cleaning-rags  are  wetted. 
A  firmer  color  may  aid,  if  it  is  rubbed  away  by  fairly  strong  pressure  of  the 
rag  as  soon  as  it  has  adhered.  This  operates  as  a  remedy  because  the  firm 
color  takes  hold  of  the  dirt  that  has  set  itself  into  the  pores  of  the  stones, 
and  when  it  is  removed,  takes  the  dirt  with  it.  If  none  of  these  have  results, 
there  is  nothing  left  except  to  grind  off  the  plate  very  slightly  and  carefully 
with  an  exceedingly  fine  stone  and  gum  solution.  In  the  case  of  very  deli- 
cate designs,  this  is  not  applicable,  because  the  finest  lines  have  practically 
no  depth.  Therefore  they  must  be  washed  instead,  a  rag  being  dipped  into 
weak  aquafortis  or  very  much  diluted  phosphoric  acid,  and  passed  care- 
fully over  the  stone  till  the  dirt  disappears.  It  is  well  to  mix  in  a  little  gum, 
and  also  to  rub  acid-proof  ink  into  the  stone  first,  that  the  etching  fluid 
may  not  attack  the  design  too  much. 

After  this  cleansing  the  tone  will  disappear,  but  another  fault  often  ap- 
pears in  place  of  it.  The  color,  after  rubbing-in,  will  not  permit  itself  to  be 
wiped  away  readily,  because  the  etching  has  caused  some  roughnesses  to 
which  the  color  adheres  in  the  form  of  little  specks.  A  number  of  clean 
rags  with  gum  solution  must  then  be  used,  or  the  stone  should  be  lightly 
rolled  a  few  times  with  the  ink-roller  after  being  rubbed-in.  The  roller 
will  take  the  specks.  Indeed,  the  fault  hardly  ever  appears  if  the  inking-in 


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is  done  with  the  roller,  as  suggested  in  the  remarks  about  the  third  form  of 
inking-in. 

As  soon  as  some  few  impressions  have  been  made,  the  roughness  of  the 
plate  disappears  gradually  and  it  can  be  wiped  off  without  leaving  specks 
behind.  Gentle  rubbing  with  pumice  finely  powdered  and  mixed  with  gum 
solution  will  remove  the  defect  in  the  very  beginning,  but  care  is  needed 
lest  the  design  be  injured. 

(2)  A  line  that  has  so  little  depth  that  it  Is  almost  level  with  the  surface 
of  the  stone  can  be  made  as  black  as  a  deeply  engraved  one  by  continued 
rubbing  with  the  color  rag.  In  using  a  firmer  color  the  lines,  especially  the 
wider  ones,  can  be  so  overloaded  after  a  while  that  the  ink  will  squash 
under  the  press.  This  surplus  can  be  removed  again  by  the  use  of  the 
ink-roller,  but  it  is  merely  adding  unnecessary  work,  as  proper  practice  in 
inking-in  and  the  use  of  exactly  the  right  consistency  of  color  will  prevent 
the  trouble. 

(3)  The  best  way  to  ink-in  an  intaglio  design  is  to  rub  it  in  at  first  with 
a  somewhat  firm  color  that  however,  contains  enough  gum,  then  to  wipe 
it  a  bit,  and  after  that  to  rub  gently  to  and  fro  over  the  stone  under  gentle 
pressure,  with  a  rag  containing  a  less  heavy  color.  A  firmer  color  does  not 
adhere  well  to  the  more  delicate  lines,  or,  at  least,  is  hard  to  print;  but  by 
applying  it  first,  the  printing  of  the  wider  and  deeper  lines  is  facilitated, 
while  the  succeeding  rubbing  with  softer  color  brings  out  the  perfection  of 
the  finer  lines. 

The  second  rag  with  the  lighter  color  must  not  be  filled  with  it  in  mass, 
but  should  merely  be  made  sooty  with  it,  so  to  speak.  Otherwise  the 
lighter  color  would  penetrate  the  deeper  lines  also  and  mix  there  with  the 
heavier  color. 

In  the  end  the  stone  must  be  wiped  again  with  an  entirely  clean  rag,  as 
will  be  understood,  of  course,  and  thoroughly  cleansed  of  all  the  color. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     207 

II 

THE  ETCHED  METHOD 

.  In  this  the  design  is  not  engraved  into  the  stone  by  pressure  of  the  hand, 
but  with  aquafortis  or  other  acid,  and  only  so  much  pressure  is  exerted  in 
making  the  design  as  is  required  to  cut  through  the  thin  coating  of  varnish 
with  which  the  stone  is  covered.  Therefore  this  method  permits  great  free- 
dom of  action  and  is  appHcable  especially  for  landscape  work  and  for 
drawings  in  Rembrandt's  style.  In  treatment  as  in  effect  it  resembles  cop- 
per plate,  and  has  its  own  advantage  in  that  the  lines  may  be  strengthened 
gradually  by  stronger  pressure  on  the  engraving-needle.  They  may  even 
be  engraved  a  little  into  the  stone  so  that  afterward  the  lines  will  become 
stronger  under  etching.  This  cannot  be  done  with  copper  at  all  or  only 
with  great  difficulty. 

These  considerations  and  the  quicker  printing  permitted  by  it  recom- 
mend the  method  to  artists.  In  other  respects  it  is  not  different  from  work- 
ing on  copper.  But  it  is  necessary  that  a  good  lithographer  should  be  a 
master  of  this  form  of  stone  work,  as  it  may  be  used  for  excellent  work, 
not  only  by  itself  but  in  combination  with  the  other  methods. 

The  stone  must  be  ground  as  smoothly  as  possible,  then  treated  with 
aquafortis  and  coated  with  gum,  so  that  its  surface  thus  is  completely  pre- 
pared. The  aquafortis  maybe  as  strong  as  that  used  for  etching  pen  work. 
It  suffices,  also,  to  wipe  the  plate  merely  with  a  sponge  dipped  in  stronger 
aquafortis,  the  chief  point  being  that  no  roughnesses  shall  be  caused  by 
uneven  etching. 

A  few  minutes  after  this  first  operation  is  finished,  the  stone  is  rinsed 
with  water,  dried  and  coated  with  etching-ground.  This  can  be  best  done 
as  follows:  — 

(i)  Warm  the  stone  till  an  ordinary  copper  etcher's  etching-ground  will 
become  so  fluid  on  it  that  it  can  be  worked  with  a  leather  ball  like  a  varnish, 
and  can  be  spread  very  thin  and  very  evenly.  Great  care  must  be  exer- 
cised lest  uneven  warming  crack  the  stone.  If  one  can  put  it  into  a  nearby 


2o8     TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

baker's  oven,  it  will  obviate  the  necessity  for  an  especial  apparatus,  which 
otherwise  is  demanded. 

After  coating  the  stone  with  the  etching-ground,  it  is  reversed  while  still 
warm,  and  blackened  by  applying  the  flame  of  a  tallow  or  wax  candle,  as 
the  copper-plate  etchers  do  with  their  plates.  Then  the  stone  is  set  aside 
to  cool,  with  great  precautions  against  dust.  After  it  is  cool,  dust  will  not 
harm  it,  and  it  can  be  kept  indefinitely  before  use,  so  long  as  the  coating 
is  protected  against  injury. 

(2)  The  method  given  is  the  best ;  but  if  the  warming  of  the  stone  is  dif- 
ficult, there  is  a  method  applicable  to  cold  stones.  The  etching-ground  is 
dissolved  in  oil  of  turpentine  and  laid  on  the  stone  with  a  clean  ball.  A 
stone  so  treated  must  be  put  away  for  at  least  a  day  in  a  place  safe  from 
dust  that  the  oil  of  turpentine  may  evaporate. 

To  tint  this  etching-ground,  it  may  be  blackened  by  smoking  with  a 
candle,  as  in  the  first  case ;  or  color,  such  as  lampblack  or  vermilion,  may 
be  mixed-in  before  it  is  applied.  If  one  wishes  to  be  very  certain  that  the 
stone  will  bear  the  etching  well,  it  may  be  coated,  very  thinly  indeed, 
with  a  solution  of  very  firm  chemical  ink  after  applying  the  etching- 
ground. 

The  design  is  traced  through  this  coating  to  the  stone.  It  may  be  trans- 
ferred, also,  but  in  that  case,  as  soon  as  the  transfer  is  on  the  stone,  it  must 
be  coated  thinly  once  more  with  a  solution  of  chemical  ink  that  does  not, 
however,  contain  any  lampblack  or  other  coloring-matter,  but  is  trans- 
parent. This  is  necessary  to  fill  out  any  little  holes  and  other  injuries  that 
may  have  been  caused  by  the  pressure  during  transfer  or  by  the  inequali- 
ties in  the  transfer  paper. 

The  designing  with  the  needle  is  done  as  in  the  engraved  manner,  except 
that  the  design  is  merely  cut  into  the  coating. 

When  the  design  is  complete,  the  stone  is  laid  into  the  etching-trough 
and  diluted  aquafortis,  muriatic  acid,  or  strong  wine  vinegar  is  poured 
over  it  repeatedly,  according  to  the  depth  that  the  lines  are  to  have. 

If  it  is  desired  to  etch  so  as  to  produce  various  tones,  —  some  strong  and 
some  delicate,  —  after  the  manner  of  the  copper-plate  etchers,  the  pouring 


TEXT- BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE    209 

of  acid  should  cease  as  soon  as  the  very  finest  lines  of  the  design  have  been 
etched  sufficiently.  Wash  away  every  bit  of  acid  with  clean  water  and  let 
it  dry.  Then,  with  a  small  brush  and  chemical  ink,  coat  all  parts  that  are 
not  to  be  etched  further.  It  is  well  if  the  chemical  ink  used  for  this  purpose 
contains  a  little  more  soap  than  usual,  so  that  it  can  penetrate  well  into  all 
the  depressions  and  leave  no  little  holes.  The  coating  must  be  done  very 
cautiously,  and  it  is  better  to  paint  on  too  much  ink  rather  than  too  little, 
as  the  design  will  appear  very  dirty  if  etching  fluid  should  penetrate  here 
or  there  through  the  coated  portions. 

When  the  ink  is  dry,  etching  is  resumed  till  the  second  tones  have  been 
etched  as  far  as  desired.  Then  the  procedure  is  repeated,  these  second 
tones  being  coated.  Thus  one  continues  till  all  gradations  of  shading  have 
been  reached. 

When  the  stone  is  fully  etched,  clean  water  is  poured  over  it,  and  then  all 
the  parts  that  have  not  been  coated  with  chemical  ink  are  treated  to  a  cov- 
ering. The  object  of  the  previous  coatings  was  to  prevent  access  of  acid  to 
the  parts;  but  at  the  same  time  the  ink  prepared  the  parts.  Therefore  the 
remaining  portions  of  the  design  also  must  be  sated  with  ink  before  the 
stone  is  inked-in  for  printing. 

Let  the  stone  dry  and  then  pour  on  it  as  much  oil  of  turpentine  as  may 
be  necessary  to  dissolve  this  whole  ground  coating,  which  then  is  wiped 
off  with  a  woolen  rag  wet  with  gum  solution.  Then  the  stone  maybe  inked- 
in  and  printed. 

If  an  error  is  observed  before  etching  begins,  the  first  question  is  if  the 
defect  is  deeply  engraved  in  the  stone  or  if  it  has  been  drawn  merely 
through  tlie  ground  coating  without  affecting  the  stone  itself  materially. 
In  the  latter  case  it  is  necessary  merely  to  cover  the  defective  place  with 
chemical  ink  and  draw  into  it  the  correction.  If  the  error  has  been  graved 
deeply  into  the  stone,  it  must  be  covered  for  the  time  being,  but  nothing 
new  can  be  drawn  there.  To  do  this,  one  must  wait  till  the  plate  has  been 
etched  and  rubbed-in  with  color.  Then  the  incorrect  part  is  scraped  or 
ground  off^  as  evenly  as  possible,  the  place  prepared  anew  with  aquafortis 
and  gum,  and  the  correction  made  with  the  steel  needle. 


210    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

An  intaglio  design  often  is  greatly  beautified  by  being  printed  with  a 
tint  plate  like  a  crayon  design.  It  can  be  done  with  a  second  stone,  but  it 
can  be  obtained  also  with  the  one  plate  that  has  the  design  on  it.  Wash  the 
designed  stone  with  clean  water  and  then  paint  a  thick  coat  of  chemical 
ink  containing  more  soap  than  usual  over  the  whole  stone  or  over  only 
such  parts  as  one  desires  to  improve  by  adding  a  tone.  If  lights  are  to  be 
worked  into  this  tone,  it  can  be  done,  after  inking-in,  with  a  small  brush 
dipped  into  weak  aquafortis. 

In  printing  a  stone  thus  toned,  it  must  be  rubbed-in  thoroughly  with  the 
black  color  and  then  cleaned  as  well  as  possible.  The  tint  that  shows  on 
the  surface  then  is  usually  too  dark,  and  the  firmer  the  color  the  darker  it 
is.  Then  a  second  rag  must  be  used  with  a  much  softer  color,  which  may 
even  be  thinned-down  with  plain  oil  or  butter.  It  may  also  contain  an- 
other coloring  substance.  Rub  this  rag  very  gently  to  and  fro  without 
much  pressure  till  it  is  apparent  that  the  dark  tone  has  been  replaced  by 
a  light  one.  Then  the  stone  is  ready  for  printing. 

Stones  to  be  treated  to  a  tint  in  this  manner  must  be  etched  somewhat 
deeper  than  others,  because  the  lines  do  not  appear  so  dark  against  a 
tone. 

In  all  intaglio  methods  there  is  the  advantage  that  parts  that  turn  out 
too  dark  can  be  modified  by  fine  scraping  or  grinding.  The  stone  merely 
must  be  rubbed  with  acid-proof  ink  beforehand,  that  the  necessary  pre- 
paration of  the  corrected  places  with  aquafortis  or  phosphoric  acid  and 
gum  may  not  attack  the  rest  of  the  design.  Those  who  attain  skill  in  scrap- 
ing or  grinding  with  a  small  piece  of  black  slate  can  make  the  softest  gra- 
dations of  shade  in  uniformly  etched  designs,  and  more  easily  and  quickly 
than  by  drawing  or  coating  and  etching.  If  the  stone  has  been  rubbed-in 
with  color  for  the  first  time  only  a  short  time  previously,  the  ground  or 
scraped  surfaces  do  not  even  need  to  be  etched.  It  is  suflScient  to  wash 
them  with  a  rag  wetted  in  gum  solution,  because  the  color  will  not  have 
penetrated  the  stone  so  deeply  that  it  is  likely  to  reappear. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     211 

III 

DESIGN  WITH  PREPARING  INK,  COMBINED  WITH  SPATTERED  AQUATINT 

If  a  little  dissolved  gum  is  painted  on  a  clean  stone  that  then  is  inked 
over  its  whole  surface  with  printing-ink,  none  will  adhere  where  the  gum 
is.  In  other  words,  the  stone  will  have  been  prepared  there.  If  the  gum  is 
permitted  to  dry  before  the  ink  is  applied,  those  parts  will  become  black, 
too;  but  as  soon  as  a  few  drops  of  water  are  poured  on  and  the  ink-roller 
passes  over  the  stone,  all  the  gummed  parts  will  show  up  white  at  once. 
This  led  me  to  make  a  color  mixed  with  gum,  with  which  one  can  design 
on  stone  and  that  would  have  the  property  of  preparing  it  so  that,  on  print- 
ing, the  design  or  inscription  will  print  white. 

Some  drops  of  gum  arable  dissolved  in  water  are  mixed  with  an  equal 
amount  of  lampblack  and  rubbed  very  fine.  This  makes  an  ink  similar  to 
Chinese  ink,  and  keeps  well  when  dried.  It  is  rubbed  down  in  a  saucer 
with  a  little  water  and  then  is  ready  for  use. 

It  can  be  used  on  a  clean  stone,  but  is  likely  to  flow,  for  which  reason 
the  stone  must  be  painted  with  a  little  weak  aquafortis  mixed  with  a  little 
nutgall,  and  then  well  cleaned  again.  Still  better  is  it  to  paint  a  clean  stone 
some  days  before  with  oil  of  turpentine  which  is  cleaned  off  again  immedi- 
ately. In  that  case,  however,  it  is  well  to  mix  a  little  phosphoric  acid  into 
the  drawing-ink,  that  the  designed  parts  will  be  prepared  the  more  surely. 

WTien  the  design  is  dry,  the  whole  stone  is  inked  with  printing-color, 
care  being  taken  that  not  a  drop  of  water  touches  it  before  it  is  perfectly 
black.  Then  a  little  water  is  poured  on,  after  which  there  must  be  a  little 
more  rolling  with  the  ink-roller  till  all  the  design  that  is  drawn  with  the 
preparing-ink  is  very  white  and  clean.  Now  the  stone  can  be  used  for 
printing,  being  used  in  the  manner  used  for  pen  work.  To  make  the  design 
more  durable,  that  it  may  not  in  time  thicken  in  its  finer  parts,  the  stone 
may  be  well  inked-in  with  acid-proof  ink  and  after  a  few  hours,  during 
which  it  draws  together  well,  the  drawing  is  etched  in  intaglio  with  aqua- 
fortis. Then  it  is  coated  with  gum  and  the  printing  is  not  likely  to  damage 
the  design. 


212    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

Here  we  have  an  intaglio  design  which  is  prepared  and  prints  white. 

The  case  may  be  reversed,  and  the  black  plate  may  be  made  white  again 
while  the  design  will  print  black.  This  is  because  a  stone  treated  with  pre- 
paring-ink  gives  almost  the  same  result,  once  it  is  grounded  with  acid-proof 
ink  and  etched  as  if  the  design  had  been  engraved  into  etching-ground. 
The  etched  lines  need  simply  be  filled  with  chemical  ink  as  in  engraved 
work,  to  make  them  take  color  instead  of  coating  them  with  gum.  Then 
there  remains  only  the  obstacle  that  the  stone  is  not  prepared  over  its 
whole  surface  and  takes  color  everywhere.  However,  it  is  not  difficult  to 
clean  the  plate  and  prepare  it  perfectly,  especially  if  the  stone  is  finely  pol- 
ished. It  must  be  rubbed  well  with  color,  and  wiped  clean  at  once  without 
rubbing  too  much  of  it  away  from  the  etched  design.  To  make  the  color 
easier  to  wipe  out,  Frankfurter  black  and  tallow  may  be  mixed  in  it.  Then 
the  rag  that  has  been  used  for  inking-in  is  dipped  into  a  mixture  of  twenty 
parts  water,  two  parts  gum,  and  one  part  aquafortis,  or  better  still,  phos- 
phoric acid,  and  rubbed  back  and  forth.  The  rag  must  not  be  too  dirty 
and  heavy  with  color,  but  it  must  contain  some  so  that  the  delicate  parts  of 
the  design  shall  not  be  wiped  out  and  thus  rendered  susceptible  to  the 
acid.  The  next  thing  is  to  try  with  the  finger  to  see  whether  the  color  on 
top  can  be  easily  rubbed  away  or  not.  In  the  latter  case  the  wiping  must 
be  repeated  till  the  cleansing  mixture  has  so  far  prepared  the  surface  that 
the  wet  hand  or  a  wet  piece  of  leather  can  cleanse  it  perfectly  and  free  it 
from  the  dark  tone.  Now  the  stone  is  inked-in  with  firmer  color  (acid- 
proof  ink  is  best).  This  is  wiped  off  again  thoroughly.  Very  weak  aqua- 
fortis (or  phosphoric  acid  if  it  has  been  used  for  the  work)  is  then  poured 
over  it  a  few  times,  and  this  generally  prepares  it  so  well  that  it  can  be 
inked  and  cleaned  easily  during  the  printing. 

This  method  is  useful  for  many  kinds  of  art,  and  it  must  not  be  imag- 
ined that  it  is  superfluous  because  the  other  ways  are  quicker. 

The  engraving-needle  is  very  good  for  drawing  the  finer  parts  of  the  de- 
sign through  the  etching-ground,  but  the  coarser  ones  cause  much  trou- 
ble, while  widi  the  pen,  these  are  the  very  ones  that  are  easiest  to  produce. 
By  using  this  method,  both  advantages  can  be  combined  and  only  that 
is  drawn  with  the  pen  which  is  most  readily  produced  that  way. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     213 

Thus  the  whole  design,  with  the  exception  of  the  finest  parts,  is  drawn 
on  the  white  plate  with  the  black  preparing  ink  touche.  Then,  when  it  has 
been  covered  with  acid-proof  ink  and  made  white,  the  finer  parts  are 
worked-in  with  the  needle.  Or  they  may  be  left  till  the  end,  when  they  are 
engraved-in. 

For  grounding  or  blackening  the  plate,  one  may  use  a  substitute  for  the 
acid-proof  ink  if  the  ground  is  to  be  firmer.  Use  the  etching-ground  (men- 
tioned several  times  before)  of  wax,  mastic,  pitch,  and  resin,  dissolved  in 
oil  of  turpentine  and  mixed  with  fine  lampblack.  It  will  then  be  suscep- 
tible of  being  laid  beautifully  uniform  on  the  stone  with  the  ink-roller  like 
printing-ink. 

The  spattered  aquatint  method  resembles  this. 

The  outlines  of  the  design  are  engraved  or  etched  into  the  stone  very 
delicately.  After  rubbing-in  with  black  printing-ink  and  cleaning  again 
thoroughly,  it  is  rinsed  with  a  great  deal  of  clean  water  to  take  away  every 
trace  of  gum.  When  it  is  dry  a  small  brush  is  dipped  into  the  preparing- 
ink,  and  the  stone  is  spattered  as  described  in  the  article  on  spatter-work. 
After  drying,  the  dots  that  are  too  large  are  treated  with  the  needle,  and 
missing  ones  are  drawn  in  with  the  pen.  Now  apply  the  roller  with  the 
dissolved  etching-ground,  that  must,  however,  have  only  enough  color  so 
that  the  outlines  of  the  design  can  show  through  it.  Then  the  spattered 
work  is  brought  out  by  rolling  with  water.  Now  coat  the  lighter  parts  of 
the  design  and  etch.  Coat  again  and  etch  again,  in  short  do  as  already 
described  for  the  method  of  successive  etching  till  the  required  gradations 
of  shade  have  been  attained.  Then  proceed  as  usual  with  the  inking-in 
and  printing. 

IV 

AQUATINT  IN  COPPER-PLATE  STYLES  AND  WITH  ETCHING-GROUND 

Any  one  who  has  the  necessary  appliances  of  the  copper-plate  worker 
for  making  the  aquatint  ground  used  by  them,  and  who  has  the  necessary 
skill,  can  do  so,  although  the  stone  is  endangered  by  the  heat,  and  the  pro- 
cess is  not  advisable.  The  stone  is  dusted  with  fine  resin.  A  flame  of 


214    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

spirits  is  applied  below  until  the  stone  is  so  hot  that  the  resin  melts  and 
forms  the  ground. 

Better  is  that  copper-plate  method  in  which  the  resin  is  dissolved  in 
highly  rectified  spirits  of  wine  and  poured  quickly  over  the  whole  stone. 
By  breathing  on  this,  the  resin  is  made  to  separate  from  the  spirits  and 
form  tiny  pellets,  which  thus  make  the  required  aquatint  ground. 

Both  methods  are  better  for  very  coarse  work  than  forfine  designs.  Etch- 
ing-ground, dissolved  in  oil  of  turpentine,  or  consisting  simply  of  tallow  and 
put  on  the  stone  very  uniformly  with  a  cotton  ball,  is  much  better,  and 
produces  an  effect  similar  to  wash  drawing.  However,  it  is  better  suited 
to  the  lighter  parts  of  a  design,  because  it  will  bear  long  and  powerful  etch- 
ing only  if  one  hits  exactly  the  proper  proportions  between  ground  and 
etching  fluid.  Therefore,  it  is  well,  after  the  first  tones  have  been  etched 
and  printed,  to  spatter  cautiously  with  chemical  ink  all  those  parts  that 
are  to  be  darker  than  half-tones.  Thus  these  dots  will  prepare  the  design 
so  well  at  those  places  that  they  can  withstand  the  most  powerful  etching. 

V 

AQUATINT   THROUGH   CRAYON   GROUND 

This  is  a  sort  of  middle  process  between  aquatint  and  the  scraped  style. 
It  has  the  advantage  of  great  speediness. 

A  stone  that  has  been  grained  for  crayon  work  is  coated  with  the  black 
or  red  gum  ground  described  for  the  engraved  method,  but  without  pre- 
vious etching,  which  would  not  do  harm  but  is  unnecessary.  The  outlines 
are  drawn  in  with  the  needle  very  lightly,  because  they  are  to  serve  only 
to  make  the  design  visible.  Those  lines,  however,  that  are  not  to  disappear 
in  the  aquatint  tone,  but  are  to  show  plainly,  must  be  cut  as  deeply  as  nec- 
essary for  greater  or  lesser  blackness.  Then  the  stone  is  rubbed  with  color 
and  washed  with  water  as  in  the  engraved  method. 

When  it  is  entirely  clean  and  dry,  all  the  design  will  be  black  and  the 
stone  white.  The  design  must  be  examined  carefully,  and  the  various 
gradations  of  shading  should  be  separated  in  the  mind  into  about  eight  lead- 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     215 

ing  classes,  of  which  four  are  numbered  upwards  to  the  lightest  parts,  and 
four  numbered  downwards  to  the  darkest.  Everything  in  the  category  of 
the  four  dark  parts  now  is  worked  strongly  with  chemical  crayon.  The 
purpose  is  to  mass  a  number  of  evenly  separated  points  over  these  parts  of 
the  design  that  shall  withstand  the  etching  fluid  like  an  aquatint  ground, 
between  which  the  etching  fluid  may  eat  the  stone  and  thus  form  a  coarser 
grain  than  could  be  attained  merely  by  rough  grinding. 

Then  the  four  lighter  parts  must  be  coated  with  chemical  ink.  The  very 
lightest  parts,  and  all  that  is  to  remain  white,  must  be  left  white  on  the 
plate  and  neither  touched  with  crayon  or  ink. 

Then  the  stone  is  etched  for  the  first  dme.  Following  this  pour  clean 
water  over  it  and  let  it  dry.  Then  of  the  four  dark  parts  the  lightest  are 
coated  with  chemical  ink,  and  when  it  is  dry  the  etching  fluid  is  applied 
again.  After  washing  and  drying,  the  next  lighter  portions  of  the  dark 
sections  are  coated,  and  so  on  till  at  last  the  very  darkest  shadows  have  been 
coated.  Then  a  clean  brush  is  dipped  into  gum  solution  and  everything 
that  should  remain  white  is  painted. 

If  a  little  oil  of  turpentine  is  now  poured  on  the  stone,  and  the  crayon 
and  chemical  ink  are  dissolved  and  wiped  off^,  the  stone  can  be  inked  with 
soft  inking-color  and  wiped  again  with  a  woolen  rag.  Then  the  design  will 
look  as  if  a  black  veil  were  over  it,  because  the  lightest  parts  of  it  and  the 
half-shadows  are  not  worked  out  at  all.  Wet  a  rag  with  gum  solution  and. 
a  little  phosphoric  acid,  and  hold  it  in  one  hand  while  with  a  fine  scraper 
you  scrape  in  the  lights  according  to  their  gradation  or  grind  them  in  with 
a  fine  stone,  for  instance,  a  slate  pencil.  As  you  scrape  wipe  over  the  de- 
sign with  the  wet  rag;  and  you  will  see  exactly  what  you  are  doing  as  the 
various  gradations  will  appear  bit  by  bit.  The  printing  in  this  as  in  other 
aquatint  methods  is  done  with  soft  and  thin  printing-color,  and  the  paper 
may  be  more  dampened  than  in  other  forms  of  lithography.  The  press 
needs  considerable  tension  and  the  stones  must  be  thick. 


2i6    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

VI 

INTAGLIO  CRAYON   AND  TRACED   DESIGNS 

The  difficulty  of  getting  impressions  from  crayon  that  shall  not  differ 
from  the  original  design  on  the  stone  led  me  to  consider  the  use  of  the 
grained  style  of  the  copper-plate  engravers.  A  crayon-like  design  in  intag- 
lio would  have  a  greater  strength  in  the  dark  parts  and  greater  delicacy 
in  the  lighter;  be  more  durable  and  more  easily  corrected.  I  saw  at  once 
that  if  I  could  attain  some  perfection,  it  would  mean  a  great  step  forward 
in  color  printing,  also.  Thus  there  were  originated  the  following  two  pro- 
cesses, which  no  doubt  will  in  time  interest  artists  to  a  high  degree. 

A  stone  grained  for  crayon  work  is  prepared  with  aquafortis  and  gum. 
Then  it  is  cleansed  with  water  and  covered  with  etching-ground  when  dry, 
as  is  prescribed  for  the  etched  process.  The  ground  must  be  laid  on  so 
thinly  and  evenly  that  the  design  can  be  put  in  easily  and  that  it  still  will 
resist  the  etching. 

When  the  stone  is  cold  and  the  outlines  of  the  design  have  been  traced 
on  it,  a  scraper  of  the  best  steel  is  used  to  scrape  in  the  lights  and  shadows. 
The  scraper  touches  only  the  most  elevated  points  of  the  grained  surface 
at  first,  and  produces  larger  points  only  after  continued  work,  just  as 
chemical  crayon  does.  When  the  whole  stone  is  finished,  it  is  etched  as  in 
the  etched  process  and  then  cleansed  and  printed  in  the  same  way. 

If  the  stone  is  etched  a  little  more  strongly  in  all  its  gradations,  it  can 
afterward  be  ground  down  gently  with  very  soft  pumice,  or,  better  still, 
with  black  slate  and  a  gum  solution,  once  it  has  been  rubbed-in  with  color. 
This  destroys  all  roughnesses  that  may  remain  from  the  first  manipula- 
tions. Parts  that  have  turned  out  too  dark  can  be  lightened  by  this  polish- 
ing, and  the  over-light  ones  can  be  improved  with  the  needle. 

The  designs  made  in  this  manner  possess  more  delicacy  as  well  as  more 
strength  than  the  ordinary  crayon  designs,  and  there  remains  to  be  desired 
only  that  they  might  have  the  advantage  of  the  latter  of  being  worked 
black  on  white,  as  it  is  so  much  easier  for  the  artist  to  judge  his  work  on 
tlie  stone. 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING   FROM  THE  STONE    217 

Of  trials  made  in  tliis  direction,  the  two  following  ones  met  my  views  the 
best. 

One  way  is  to  grind  the  stone  rough,  pour  diluted  aquafortis  and  nut- 
gall  over  it,  clean  it  with  water  and  dry  it.  Then  die  design  is  drawn  on 
it  with  a  black  chalk  made  of  oil  of  vitriol,  tartar,  and  lampblack.  The 
further  treatment  is  the  same  as  that  in  the  case  of  designs  done  with  pre- 
paring-ink. 

I  have  not  been  able  to  give  enough  time  to  this  process  to  invent  a 
preparing-crayon  that  shall  be  very  hard  without  losing  its  preparing- 
property.  However,  the  compound  mentioned  will  produce  a  crayon  with 
which  one  can  work  well  after  a  few  days.  It  has  the  advantage  that  it  may 
be  rubbed  on  a  shading-stump  made  of  rolled  paper,  which  will  prove 
ex'cellent  for  working  the  finest  shadings  into  the  plate. 

The  other  way  is  as  follows :  A  colorless  chemical  ink  is  made  of  one 
part  wax,  two  parts  tallow,  and  one  part  soap.  This  I  dissolved  in  water 
and  with  it  I  coated  the  stone,  which  had  been  ground  rough  and  prepared 
with  phosphoric  acid,  nutgall,  and  gum,  and  then  washed  with  water. 
The  coating  was  applied  very  lightly,  but  enough  so  that  it  could  bear 
the  succeeding  etching. 

As  soon  as  it  was  dry,  I  drew  the  design  on  it  with  a  black  crayon  made 
of  tartar,  gum,  a  little  sugar,  and  a  good  amount  of  lampblack,  or  I  used 
the  ordinary  black  Paris  crayon  or  a  fine  English  lead  pencil.  Then  the 
design  was  etched,  after  which  alum  water  was  poured  over  it,  and  it  was 
set  aside  to  dry. 

As  soon  as  it  was  absolutely  dry,  I  coated  it  with  fatty  color,  and  then 
cleaned  the  stone  with  oil  of  turpentine  and  gum  solution.  If  I  wanted  an 
exceedingly  smooth  surface,  I  ground  the  stone  gently ;  but  then  the  design 
had  to  be  etched  deeply. 

The  good  results  of  these  two  experiments  led  me  to  the  following  pro- 
cess: By  following  my  instructions  exactly  the  worker  can  produce  strik- 
ing imitations  of  wash  as  well  as  crayon  drawings,  and  at  the  same  time 
unite  the  greatest  possible  ease  of  drawing  as  well  as  certainty  of  good  im- 
pressions, so  that  this  process  really  deserves  to  be  called  one  of  the  very 
best  of  all  printing-methods. 


2i8    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

The  outlines  of  the  drawing  must  be  drawn  on  the  finest  and  thinnest 
paper  that  can  be  obtained.  Then  a  very  finely  polished  stone  is  pre- 
pared with  aquafortis  and  gum,  or,  better  still,  with  phosphoric  acid,  nut- 
gall,  and  gum,  cleansed  with  water  and  dried.  Then  it  is  coated  very 
thinly  with  tallow,  which  is  patted  with  a  very  clean  leather  ball  or  with 
the  hand,  so  that  it  shall  be  very  uniformly  laid  over  the  stone.  Every- 
thing depends  on  the  thinness  and  uniformity  of  this  tallow  coating.  Then 
the  stone  must  be  smoked  with  a  wax  torch  or  a  tallow  candle.  The  dura- 
bility of  the  ground  depends  on  this  smoking,  as  without  it  a  very  thin 
coating  of  tallow  would  be  penetrated  by  the  acid. 

Now  the  stone  is  ready  for  the  design.  It  must  not  be  touched  by  so 
much  as  a  finger.  The  designed  paper  is  pasted  to  the  stone  at  the  ends, 
without  pulling,  as  the  least  motion  would  injure  the  stone's  surface.  The 
arrangement  of  elevated  supports  for  the  hand  (previously  described)  is 
needed  for  the  succeeding  work.  The  drawing  is  then  done  on  the  paper 
with  Paris  chalk,  delicate  Spanish  chalk,  an  EngUsh  lead  pencil,  or  with  a 
small  piece  of  lead.  All  that  is  drawn  on  the  paper  will  impress  itself  on 
the  stone  underneath  and  remove  the  ground  at  those  places,  thus  opening 
the  surface  for  etching. 

When  the  drawing  is  finished,  it  is  etched  and  covered  as  with  the 
etched  process,  and  afterward  is  printed  as  in  that  process. 

When  sufficient  practice  has  made  one  a  master  of  this  style,  it  will 
be  amazing  what  great  perfection,  what  miniature-like  delicacy,  and  also 
what  strength  can  be  obtained  by  proper  etching. 

Besides,  this  latter  process  is  applicable  in  combination  with  the  etched 
process. 

VII 

TOUCHE  DRAWING  WITH  ETCHING  INK 

This  method  is  very  useful  for  filling-out  etched  or  engraved  designs, 
also  for  correcting  and  completing  the  various  aquatint  processes. 

Dip  a  little  brush  into  lemon  juice  mixed  with  a  little  lampblack  and 
draw  the  design  on  the  finely  polished  and  prepared  stone.  The  acid  will 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE    219 

eat  little  holes  into  it,  which  will  take  color  if  the  lemon  juice  is  washed 
away  as  soon  as  it  has  completed  its  etching,  and  the  etched  part  has  been 
dried  and  rubbed-in  with  fat  color.  To  produce  darker  shadings  it  can  be 
laid  on  the  same  place  twice,  and  for  lighter  shadings  the  acid  either  is 
washed  away  sooner  or  diluted  with  water. 

I  do  not  doubt  that  a  skillful  chemist  could  invent  an  etching  ink  which 
would  be  even  more  perfect,  and  then  a  drawing  could  be  washed  on  the 
stone  as  easily  as  on  paper,  which  would  mean  immense  advance  for  the 
art. 

CHAPTER  III 

MIXED  METHODS 

Stone-printing  has  the  unique  property,  owned  by  no  other  process, 
that  it  is  possible  to  print  relief  and  intaglio  simultaneously.  This  property 
makes  possible  so  many  combinations  of  the  two  processes  that  a  book 
might  be  filled  with  their  description.  I  assume,  however,  that  the 
reader  will  have  understood  the  entire  science  of  the  new  art  from  what  I 
have  said,  and  that  his  own  reflection  will  tell  him  what  methods  to  use  or 
to  combine  for  each  of  his  purposes.  I  limit  myself,  therefore,  to  a  few 
leading  methods,  thus  giving  some  fundamental  idea  of  the  manipulations. 

I 

PEN  DESIGN  COMBINED  WITH   ENGRAVING 

This  can  be  utilized  in  two  ways:  — 

When  the  pen  drawing  is  finished  and  etched,  the  stone  may  be  coated 
with  red  gum  covering  and  the  needle  used  to  draw-in  the  finest  lines.  The 
printing  is  the  same  as  with  pen  work.  The  second  way  is  to  make  the  en- 
graved or  etched  part  of  the  design  first,  and  after  the  stone  has  been 
rubbed-in  with  acid-proof  ink,  cleansed  and  dried,  to  draw-in  the  rest  with 
the  pen  and  chemical  ink.  As  soon  as  the  design  is  properly  dried,  it  is 
etched  a  little  and  prepared,  and  otherwise  handled  like  an  ordinary  pen 
drawing. 


220    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

Both  ways  carry  the  advantage  that  the  pen  can  be  used  for  those  parts 
best  done  with  the  pen,  and  the  engraving-tool  for  those  parts  best  done 
with  it.  The  latter  is  especially  excellent  for  very  fine  and  elegant  script, 
such  as  title-pages,  the  finest  strokes  being  made  first  with  the  needle  and 
the  broader  ones  with  the  pen. 

II 

INTAGLIO  DESIGN   WITH   RELIEF  TINT 

This  has  been  described  thoroughly  in  our  chapter  on  etched  work. 

Ill 

INTAGLIO  AND   RELIEF   WITH   SEVERAL  PLATES 

As  already  shown,  intaglio  and  relief  can  be  printed  on  one  stone.  There- 
fore it  is  evident  that  the  two  methods  can  be  utilized  still  better  for  several 
plates,  for  instance,  printing  on  an  etched  design  with  one  or  more  plates 
that  are  tinted  in  relief,  or  by  printing  over  a  crayon  or  pen  design  in  relief 
a  tone  plate  in  aquatint  in  intaglio. 

How  to  do  this  has  been  explained  in  the  descriptions  of  relief  and  in- 
taglio methods. 

IV 

TRANSFORMING   RELIEF   INTO   INTAGLIO  AND   VICE  VERSA 

This  is,  so  to  speak,  the  test  of  a  good  lithographer,  as  it  is  the  most  dif- 
ficult of  all  methods,  and  demands  exact  knowledge  of  all  manipulations. 
I  will  try  to  explain  it  with  a  few  examples. 

EXAMPLE    I 
To  etch  a  transfer  into  intaglio 

Prepare  a  finely  ground  plate  with  phosphoric  acid  and  gum,  wash  very 
well  with  water,  and  let  it  dry.  Now  transfer  to  it  a  design  made  with  soft 
ink  or  crayon,  or  a  fresh  copper-plate  impression.  Let  the  stone  rest  for  a 
few  hours,  that  the  fatty  colors  may  take  hold  well.  Coat  it  with  clean  gum 


TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE     221 

water,  and  with  a  rag  dipped  into  acid-proof  ink  try  to  rub  about  as  much 
color  on  the  design  as  appears  to  be  required  to  make  it  withstand  some 
etching.  This  etching  is  done  with  pure  aquafortis  which  in  addition  has 
a  little  alum  mixed  with  it.  Etch  only  enough  to  eat  away  the  uppermost 
parts  of  the  prepared  surface  that  have  not  been  permeated  with  fat.  Pour 
clean  water  over  the  whole  stone  and  coat  it  with  strong  soap-water  that  is 
permitted  to  dry  on  it.  Finally,  clean  away  the  soap  with  oil  of  turpentine. 
Ink-in  with  acid-proof  color  which  will  color  the  whole  stone.  Now  as  soon 
as  it  is  wiped  gently  with  a  rag  dipped  in  gum  solution  and  weak  phos- 
phoric acid,  the  whole  design  will  appear  in  white  as  if  it  had  been  made 
with  prcparing-ink.  If  the  stone  is  inked  now  with  acid-proof  ink  and 
treated  exactly  as  instructed  in  the  article  on  the  use  of  preparing-ink,  the 
design  that  was  in  relief  originally  will  be  found  in  intaglio. 

This  process  is  capable  of  great  perfection  and  can  produce  true  master- 
pieces especially  if  the  stone  is  treated  finally  with  the  engraving  tool. 

EXAMPLE    II 
To  etch  into  intaglio  a  design  made  with  chemical  fatty  ink  or  crayon 
Etch  and  prepare  the  clean  stone  with  phosphoric  acid  and  gum.  Then 
put  on  the  design  with  ink  or  crayon,  and  perform  the  succeeding  etching 
and  other  manipulations  exactly  as  in  the  preceding  case. 

EXAMPLE    III 
To  etch  into  intaglio  any  design  etched  into  relief 

In  the  two  examples  given,  the  plate  is  etched  with  phosphoric  acid  be- 
fore transfers  or  designs  are  made  on  it.  As  the  weak  etching  with  aqua- 
fortis and  alum  does  not  penetrate  the  places  where  there  is  fat,  these  re- 
tain their  phosphorus-preparation,  and  thus  are  not  so  readily  destroyed 
by  the  succeeding  application  of  soap,  whereas  the  etched  parts  immedi- 
ately drink  in  the  fat  as  soon  as  the  soap  touches  them. 

In  stones  designed  in  the  ordinary  way,  where  the  design  does  not  lie  on 
the  prepared  surface,  but  has  really  penetrated  well  into  the  stone,  the 
transforming  is  somewhat  more  difficult,  but  can  always  be  done  after 
practice  by  using  the  following  means:  — 


222    TEXT-BOOK  OF  PRINTING  FROM  THE  STONE 

Wash  tlie  stone  with  water  and  then  coat  chemical  ink  or  strong  soap- 
water  over  it  and  let  it  dry.  Then  clean  the  stone  with  oil  of  turpentine 
and  ink-in  well  with  acid-proof  color.  Dip  a  linen  rag  into  gum  water  and 
phosphoric  acid  and  endeavor  to  wipe  away  the  color  from  the  relief  de- 
sign. After  wiping  to  and  fro  quickly  a  few  times,  try  with  the  finger  if  the 
design  will  not  whiten,  or  if  the  wiping  with  the  acid  must  be  continued. 
Care  must  be  taken  not  to  injure  the  ground  through  too  much  pressure. 
When  the  design  gets  pretty  white,  ink  the  stone  with  firm  acid-proof  ink, 
and  then  treat  as  in  the  preceding  cases. 

In  this  way  designs  in  relief  that  have  not  turned  out  as  desired  can  be 
changed  into  intaglio,  and  then,  by  the  use  of  successive  coatings  and 
etchings,  as  described  before,  improved  by  making  gradations  of  tones. 
But  it  requires  great  skill,  lacking  which  one  may  destroy  his  plates  utterly. 

EXAMPLE    IV 

To  change  an  intaglio  design  into  relief  for  easier  printing 

Many  kinds  of  scripts  and  designs  are  easier  to  engrave  with  a  needle 
than  to  do  in  relief  with  a  pen ;  or  one  may  have  workmen  who  can  use  the 
engraving  tool  better  than  the  pen,  as  the  use  of  the  latter  requires  more 
industry  and  skill  than  the  use  of  the  etching-  or  engraving-needle. 

If  one  wishes  to  transform  such  a  design  into  one  in  relief,  because  then 
it  can  be  printed  more  quickly  and  easily  and  also  will  give  more  impres- 
sions, the  following  method  will  prove  useful :  — 

Ink  the  stone  with  good  acid-proof  ink,  and  after  a  few  hours  etch  it  like 
a  pen  design  till  it  is  apparent  that  the  design  is  showing  up.  Let  it  rest 
again  a  few  hours  after  etching  and  become  quite  dry.  Then  coat  with 
gum.  Otherwise  treat  it  for  printing  like  an  ordinary  pen  design. 

Now  I  believe  that  I  have  described  faithfully  and  as  clearly  as  I  can 
all  the  lithographic  methods  to  which  unceasing  research  and  endless  ex- 
perimentation have  led  me.  In  the  following  Appendix  I  merely  make  a 
few  useful  remarks,  which  do  not  pertain  exclusively  to  lithography,  yet 
are  intimately  connected  with  it  and  surely  will  not  be  unwelcome  to  art 
lovers. 


APPENDIX  223 

APPENDIX 
I 

PRINTING  WITH  WATER  AND  OIL  COLORS  SIMULTANEOUSLY 

When  a  plate,  whether  intaglio  or  relief,  has  been  inked-inwith  oil  color, 
it  may  be  coated  with  one  water  color,  or  it  may  be  illuminated  with  sev- 
eral, and  then  printed-off  in  one  impression.  Two  parts  of  gum  and  one 
part  of  sugar  are  used  for  this.  They  can  be  dissolved  with  any  water 
color.  Care  need  be  taken  merely  that  the  colors  are  well  dried  before  the 
impression  is  made. 

If,  however,  it  is  desired  that  the  colors  have  shades  so  that  the  impres- 
sions may  resemble  English  or  French  colored  copper-plate  prints,  the  pro- 
cess is  as  follows :  — 

Etch  all  shades  of  the  color  pretty  deeply  in  any  of  the  stippled  or  aqua- 
tint styles.  After  this,  coat  the  stone  with  gum  solution,  that  it  shall  take 
no  color  in  these  depressions.  Clean  off  the  chemical  ink  or  the  ground 
with  oil  of  turpentine,  and  prepare  the  whole  plate  if  it  has  not  been  pre- 
pared already  on  its  surface.  Then  coat  it  with  red  gum  surface,  and  into 
this  inscribe  all  those  lines  that  are  to  remain  black.  Then  the  color  is 
rubbed-in  and  the  stone  cleansed  so  that  it  will  be  white  everjrwhere  ex- 
cept in  the  engraved  parts.  When  it  isinked-in  now,  it  can  take  color  there 
only,  and  the  other  depressions  (namely  the  various  shades  of  the  color) 
will  remain  white  because  they  have  been  prepared.  Now  it  is  necessary 
only  to  coat  each  part  with  the  desired  water  color  and  it  will  be  denser, 
and  therefore  darker,  wherever  there  are  more  and  greater  depressions. 

II 

SIMULTANEOUS  CHEMICAL  AND  MECHANICAL  PRINTING 

When  a  pen  drawing  is  so  constituted  that  the  various  lines  are  close 
together  and  there  is  no  white  space  on  it  that  is  greater  than  at  most  one 
half  inch  in  diameter,  it  will  permit  printing  in  a  purely  mechanical  way 


224  APPENDIX 

without  being  prepared.  It  need  merely  be  etched  into  all  the  relief  pos- 
sible without  under-eating  the  lines.  All  that  is  needed  then  is  a  color- 
board  or  a  so-called  dauber,  made  as  follows :  — 

A  thin  board  of  soft  wood,  about  eight  inches  long  and  six  inches  wide, 
is  planed  down  till  it  is  not  more  than  one  line  in  thickness.  Glue  on  it  a 
piece  of  fine  cloth  or  felt  almost  as  large  as  it.  Over  this  glue  another 
board,  of  the  same  area  as  the  first,  but  one  quarter  inch  thick.  It  must  be 
very  well-dried  wood,  and  must  be  made  very  true  with  the  plane,  or  bet- 
ter still,  by  rubbing  on  a  perfectly  level  stone  with  sand.  This  latter  board 
is  provided  with  a  handle ;  and  when  all  is  dry  this  dauber  is  ground  ofi^  true 
again  with  fine  sand  and  oil  on  a  stone. 

Lay  the  printing-color  on  this  utensil  very  gently  and  uniformly  with  a 
leather  ball.  Tap  and  pat  the  stone,  which  has  first  been  cleaned  with  oil 
of  turpentine  over  its  whole  surface,  very  carefully  with  the  appliance, 
holding  it  as  horizontal  as  possible  and  taking  great  pains  to  distribute 
the  color  evenly. 

As  compared  with  chemical  printing,  this  process  in  itself  has  no  ad- 
vantages, but  can  be  united  with  it  and  thus  used  to  print  three  colors  from 
one  plate.  This  is  shown  by  the  following 

EXAMPLE 

Suppose  that  a  design  shall  be  colored  black,  blue,  and  red,  and  that  all 
these  colors  shall  be  put  simultaneously  on  one  plate.  Take  a  stone  made 
ready  for  pen  work,  and  prepare  it  first  of  all  with  phosphoric  acid,  nut- 
gall,  and  gum,  then  wash  it  with  water,  and  let  it  dry.  Now  draw-in  all 
that  is  to  be  red  with  chemical  ink,  that  must,  however,  contain  only  just 
enough  soap  to  permit  its  solution.  When  this  drawing  is  dry,  etch  it  into 
pretty  high  relief,  the  higher  the  better.  After  this  prepare  the  stone  with 
gum,  wash  it,  and  let  it  dry  again.  Then  coat  it  with  etching-ground  that 
has  been  dissolved  in  oil  of  turpentine,  and  draw-in  all  that  is  to  be  black, 
between  and  over  the  high  etched  parts.  Then  etch  this  design  pretty 
powerfully  into  intaglio,  after  which  wash  with  water,  rinse  with  alum  solu- 
tion, and  dry.  When  the  plate  is  thoroughly  dry,  rub-in  printing-color, 


-6 


APPENDIX  225 

and  clean  with  a  woolen  rag  dipped  into  gum  solution  and  oil  of  turpen- 
tine. Then  it  will  become  white  everywhere  except  in  the  deep  lines 
where  it  will  have  taken  color.  After  cleansing  again  with  water  and  dry- 
ing, draw-in  all  parts  that  are  to  be  blue,  using  a  chemical  ink  that  con- 
tains a  great  deal  of  soap.  Let  this  dry  well,  and  cleanse  the  plate  with 
gum  and  oil  of  turpentine  again.  Then  it  is  ready  for  inking-in. 

To  lay  on  the  color,  proceed  as  follows :  — 

First  the  black  is  rubbed-in,  as  prescribed  in  the  article  on  the  intaglio 
style.  In  the  very  deep  parts  the  stone  will  get  very  black.  In  the  parts 
last  drawn,  that  are  level  with  the  surface,  it  will  be  only  gray,  if  the  color 
permits  ready  wiping,  which  can  be  facilitated  by  the  use  of  gum  and  a 
woolen  rag.  Then  the  tone  remaining  on  the  level  parts  drawn  with  the 
chemical  ink  will  be  so  pale  that  it  will  not  affect  the  blue  color.  Now  wipe 
a  rag  dipped  in  blue  color  gently  to  and  fro  till  everything  that  is  to  be  blue 
has  taken  the  color  well.  Then  take  the  dauber  which  has  been  filled  with 
red  color,  and  pat  the  stone,  which  should  be  dry  by  that  time.  Then  the 
parts  of  the  design  in  high  relief  will  take  the  red  color,  and  thus  an  im- 
pression can  be  made  with  the  three  colors  at  once.  Each  inking-in  must 
be  done  the  same  way. 

Ill 

USE  OF  THE   STONE  FOR  COTTON-PRINTING  THROUGH  WIPING.  A  UNIQUE 

PRINTING  PROCESS 

Etched  copper  plates  have  been  used  for  some  considerable  time  for 
cotton-printing,  and  as  the  ordinary  oil  colors  were  not  suitable  for  this, 
while  the  suitable  colors  were  too  fluid,  so  that  they  were  always  wiped  out 
of  the  engravings,  another  method  was  devised.  The  plate  was  covered 
with  color  and  then  a  kind  of  straight  edge  was  scraped  across  it,  which 
removed  all  color  from  the  surface,  leaving  it  only  in  the  depressions. 

This  same  sort  of  wiping  is  applicable  to  stone,  and  it  is  necessary  merely 
to  see  that  the  stone  is  very  even  and  highly  polished.  The  color  must  be 
one  that  permits  itself  to  be  wiped  off  clean,  and  the  wiper  must  be  very 
uniform  and  sharp. 

Starch-paste  or  gum  with  some  caustic  material  is  easily  scraped  off. 


226  APPENDIX 

IV 

COLOR  PRINT  WITH  WIPING 

This  process  is  also  useful  for  printing  papers  such  as  cotton  papers, 
tapestry,  etc.  Almost  all  intaglio  designs  permit  good  printing  in  this  way, 
if  a  handsome  color  is  used. 

Fresh  cheese,  or  drops  of  congealed  milk,  mixed  with  soap,  potash,  lin- 
seed oil  varnish,  and  the  desired  tint,  make  an  excellent  composition,  with 
which  all  intaglio  designs,  even  aquatints,  can  be  printed  handsomely  if 
the  plate  is  very  smooth. 

'  If  the  design  is  made  well,  the  various  colors  can  be  laid  on  quite  roughly, 
care  being  taken  merely  that  each  color  shall  be  laid  only  where  it  is  de- 
sired. Then  the  stone  should  be  permitted  to  dry,  after  which  all  the  sur- 
plus colors  can  be  scraped  away  with  one  manipulation,  without  danger 
that  one  will  mix  with  the  other  in  the  design. 

V 

OIL-PAINTING  PRINT  THROUGH  TRANSFER 

Colored  impressions  resembling  oil  paintings  can  be  made  by  printing 
with  colors  and  several  plates  on  paper  grounded  with  oil  color.  But  per- 
fect oil  paintings  are  produced  only  as  follows:  — 

Make  a  considerable  quantity  of  special  paper  by  coating  unsized  paper 
thinly  with  starch-paste  or  glue.  On  this  make  the  separate  impressions 
from  each  color  plate.  If  the  painting  itself  is  to  be  produced  from  these 
separate  parts,  take  a  canvas  that  has  been  prepared  for  oil  painting  and 
lay  on  it  a  wetted  impression  of  one  of  the  colors,  let  us  say,  red.  Print 
this  off  under  light  tension  of  the  press,  and  when  the  paper  is  pulled  away, 
it  will  be  seen  that  the  color  has  been  transferred  to  the  canvas.  Then  a 
wet  impression  of  another  color  is  laid  carefully  in  place  so  that  it  will  reg- 
ister exactly,  and  the  process  is  repeated,  till  all  the  colors  have  been  trans- 
ferred to  the  canvas. 

The  transferring  can  be  done  with  the  hand  or  with  any  other  method, 
as  no  great  power  is  needed,  since  the  color  transfers  itself  readily. 


APPENDIX  227 

VI 

STONE-PAPER 

This  is  the  name  already  generally  adopted  for  a  substitute  invented  by 
me  for  the  Solenhofen  stones. 

I  had  been  trying  for  a  long  time  to  invent  some  stone-like  mixture  that 
would  be  equally  suitable  for  printing.  The  ordinary  parchment  of  the 
writing-tablets  would  do  if  its  surface  were  not  soluble  in  water.  I  made 
considerable  progress  with  a  composition  of  lime  and  freshly  congealed 
milk  after  the  mixture  had  aged  enough  so  that  the  lime  could  sate  itself 
with  oxygen.  Then  I  made  a  composition  of  chalk,  gypsum,  and  glue, 
which  I  dipped  into  a  solution  of  nutgall  and  alum,  and  I  was  able  to  use 
this  for  coarser  work,  at  least,  if  not  too  many  impressions  were  required. 

I  did  not  get  a  wholly  satisfactory  idea,  however,  until  I  observed  that 
fat  spots  that  were  caused  on  a  stone  by  oil,  and  also  designs  that  had  been 
transferred  to  the  stone  with  mere  oil  color,  refused  to  take  color  after  a 
few  weeks  if  they  were  prepared  in  only  the  slightest  degree. 

I  reasoned  from  this  that  oil  suffered  a  change  from  exposure  to  air,  and 
by  combining  itself  presumably  with  oxygen  acquired  a  more  earthy  char- 
acter. This  deduction  may  be  correct  or  not;  but  it  led  me  to  experiment 
with  oil  as  a  binder  for  various  earthy  substances,  because  I  reasoned  that 
such  a  composition  would  be  insoluble  in  water.  The  only  question,  then, 
would  be  if  despite  the  intermixed  oil  it  would  permit  itself  to  be  prepared, 
that  is,  if  it  could  be  made  resistant  to  other  fats. 

The  result  justified  my  hopes  so  thoroughly  that  I  am  convinced  now 
that  with  various  compositions  of  clay,  chalk,  linseed  oil,  and  metallic 
oxides  a  stone-like  mass  can  be  made  that  is  excellent  for  coating  paper, 
linen,  wood,  metal,  etc.,  and  thus  for  making  plates  that  not  only  replace 
the  stone  for  printing,  but  in  many  cases  are  far  superior  to  it. 

I  shall  give  the  world  a  book  soon  about  these  fortunate  attempts  of 
mine,  and  thus  perhaps  give  expert  chemists  an  opportunity  to  perfect  my 
invention  still  more. 


228  APPENDIX 

VII 

CHEMICAL  PRINT  ON  METAL  PLATES 

All  metals  have  great  inclination  for  fats ;  but  if  they  are  quite  dean, 
being  ground  with  pumice,  for  instance,  or  rubbed-down  with  chalk,  they 
can  be  prepared  like  a  stone,  that  is,  they  acquire  the  property  of  resisting 
oil  color,  thus  becoming  available  for  chemical  printing. 

Iron  and  zinc  can  be  prepared  like  the  stone  with  aquafortis  and  gum. 

To  prepare  zinc  and  lead,  aquafortis  with  nutgall  and  gum  will  serve, 
but  a  slight  admixture  of  blue  vitriol  will  make  still  a  better  preparation, 
and  this  in  a  degree  that  improves  according  to  the  amount  of  copper  that 
the  surface  acquires  from  the  coating.  The  most  durable  preparation  for 
lead  and  zinc  is  a  mixture  of  aquafortis,  gum,  and  nitrate  of  copper. 

Brass  and  copper  are  best  prepared  with  aquafortis,  gum,  and  nitrate 
of  lime,  all  mixed  in  proper  proportions. 

Lime  and  gum  are  a  good  preparation  for  all  metals;  also  potash  with 
salt  and  gum. 

This  alkaline  preparation,  however,  is  applicable  only  for  the  intaglio 
style.  For  the  relief  style,  the  acids  are  better. 

Recently  I  have  applied  chemical  printing  from  metal  plates  to  a  new 
form  of  copying-machines,  with  which  everything  written  or  drawn  with 
chemical  ink  or  crayon  on  paper  can  be  transferred  in  a  few  moments  and 
manifolded  several  hundred  times.  His  Royal  Majesty  of  Bavaria  has 
had  the  supreme  condescension  to  grant  me  a  six  years'  patent  on  this 
invention. 

Until  now  I  have  not  been  able  to  give  this  matter  the  necessary  attention 
because  the  work  of  publishing  this  book  hindered  me ;  but  now  I  shall 
make  such  a  stock  of  these  simple,  convenient,  and  so  widely  useful  hand- 
presses  that  it  will  be  worth  while  to  open  a  subscription,  which  would  en- 
able me  to  sell  them  for  a  low  price.  This  would  please  me  best,  as  my 
highest  reward  would  be  the  general  use  of  my  inventions,  to  fulfill  which 
desire  I  have  taken  the  utmost  pains  in  this  work. 

In  the  last  parts  of  the  book  I  have  gone  less  into  details,  merely  because 


APPENDIX  229 

I  assume  that  those  who  have  mastered  the  first  parts  of  this  work  will  not 
need  many  words  to  understand  the  rest. 

If  the  demand  for  this  perhaps  prematurely  announced  book  had  not  be- 
come so  vehement  lately  that  I  could  not  possibly  delay  its  publication 
any  longer,  I  should  have  tried  to  produce  sample  illustrations  that  com- 
bine inner  art  value  with  good  printing.  As  it  is,  I  postpone  this  for  a  sup- 
plementary volume  soon  to  appear,  in  which  I  shall  occupy  myself  mainly 
with  processes  and  methods  not  yet  generally  known,  representing 
each  by  means  of  a  true  work  of  art.  With  which  I  now  end  my  text-book, 
with  the  hearty  wish  that  it  will  find  many  friends  and  create  many  good 
lithographers.  This  may  God  grant! 


PRINTED  BY  H.  O.  HOUGHTON  &  CO. 

CAMBRIDGE,  MASS. 

U.S.A. 


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